(CNN) — Two teenagers are being held in connection with Wednesday’s shooting after the Kansas City Chiefs’ Super Bowl rally — which left one woman dead and more than 20 others injured — were charged Thursday, according to Missouri court officials. .
The Office of Juvenile Justice said the teens face charges related to firearms and resisting arrest, and are currently in the Juvenile Detention Center.
“Additional charges are anticipated to be filed in the future as the Kansas City Police Department’s investigation continues,” the Bureau said in a statement.
As police continued their investigation, a crowd gathered to hold a vigil Thursday night in a plaza adjacent to Children’s Mercy Hospital, where several children who were injured during the shooting are hospitalized. Church leaders prayed as people held candles that illuminated the dark, cold winter evening.
People hold candles during a vigil in Kansas City on Thursday. (Photo: Emmalee Reed/CNN).
The somber gathering was a stark contrast to the day before, when about 1 million people gathered just steps from Union Station in downtown Kansas City for the parade and rally to celebrate the Chiefs’ championship, a party in where smiling NFL athletes greeted fans and paraded in double-decker buses.
After the shooting, CNN spoke with four hospitals that received 29 patients who were in the crowd. Hospital officials said 19 of them were treated for gunshot wounds.
As of late Friday morning, only one patient remained at Children’s Mercy Hospital, spokeswoman Marlene Bentley said.
CNN previously reported that the children’s hospital received 12 patients after the shooting, including one adult and 11 children, ages 6 to 15. Nine children had gunshot wounds, said Stephanie Meyer, the hospital’s chief nursing officer.
This Friday, the Chiefs, in partnership with other groups, said the team launched an emergency response fund and has contributed US$200,000 to help shooting victims and their families.
Wednesday’s incident was at least the 48th mass shooting in the United States so far this year, according to Gun Violence Archivewhich, like CNN, counts those in which there are four or more gunshot wounds, not including the perpetrator.
It also marked the second shooting in a year at a major US sports title celebration, after two people were injured in June as Denver fans left an NBA Nuggets parade.
The radio station’s DJ, Lisa López-Galván, was killed in the Kansas City shooting, KKFI 90.1 FM said. Lisa died after being shot at the demonstration, according to the station. López-Galván is remembered by her family as “a very loving, attentive and devoted mother” and a leader in her community, her brother, Beto López, told CNN’s Anderson Cooper on Thursday.
Police initially reported Wednesday that they detained three people after the shooting. Kansas City police spokesperson Alayna Gonzalez later told CNN in an email that “one of them was determined not to be involved.”
Police Chief Stacey Graves said Thursday that it is still unclear how many people were involved in Wednesday’s shooting. “I don’t have a specific number of people who perpetrated the violence that unfolded,” Graves said at a news conference Thursday.
Now that the investigation continues, the bullets and casings left at the scene are key to determining whether there is a possible connection to the people in custody, as well as other possible suspects, a law enforcement source told CNN. Investigators from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives will also analyze whether the bullets or casings match any of those firearms or any weapons in the databases, according to the source.
Cleanup at Union Station in Kansas City, Missouri, on Thursday. (Photo: Emmalee Reed/CNN).
Children describe how they were shot
Cash Adams, 13, an eighth-grader, was at the rally Wednesday with his cousins, hoping to get an autograph from his favorite player, Chris Jones, when gunfire erupted. KMBC reported, CNN affiliate.
The boy, who suffered a gunshot wound to the leg, located a Kansas City police officer. “I knew I needed to get to a safe place,” Cash said.
Cash detailed that the officer stayed with him the entire time, even in the medical tent where he saw the seriously injured victims enter. “There was a lot of chaos, a lot of screaming,” said the minor.
At least half of the shooting victims are under the age of 16, Graves said at Thursday’s news conference. The number of young victims in the shooting highlights the impact of gun violence on American youth.
In 2020, firearms became the leading cause of death for children and teens in the US, surpassing car accidents. On Wednesday, kids were able to come see their football heroes as school districts in the Kansas City metropolitan area canceled classes for the holidays. The players were still on stage at the victory rally when the shooting occurred.
Police clear the area following a shooting following the Kansas City Chiefs’ Super Bowl celebration rally on Wednesday, February 14. (Photo: Reed Hoffmann/AP).
A 10-year-old boy who was also injured in the shooting, Samuel Arellano, he told KSHBa CNN affiliate, who knew to hide because of the active shooter training he received in school.
“They showed me what to do: duck, hide, don’t run,” he told the station.
The boy said he ran to hide behind a trash can, but he was still hit. “One of them caught up with me while he was trying to look at my grandfather, my uncle and my cousin,” Samuel said.
“It felt like he had been stabbed,” he added, describing the wound that, according to his family, did not reach his lungs.
“They could have been inches away from my entire future,” the boy added.
NFL stars comfort children as they take cover
After the shooting, NFL stars who had been celebrating with fans became sources of comfort to them, especially children.
Kansas City Chiefs quarterback Trey Smith said he took cover in a closet with others when he heard the gunshots, and that he took a child to safety with him. “There was a little boy in front of me, So I grabbed him, pulled him and said, ‘You’re coming in here with me,'” he said. Smith a ABC.
After authorities allowed them to come out, they headed to the team buses, which quickly filled with frightened attendees. Smith, who had been wearing a World Wrestling Entertainment championship belt as a prop during the Super Bowl parade, noticed a little boy who he said was panicking. Smith said he handed the belt to the boy and told him, “Hey, buddy, you’re the champion. Nobody’s going to hurt you. Nobody’s going to hurt you, man. We’ve got your back.”
The cornerback of the Kansas City Chiefs, L’Jarius Sneed, He also described trying to help children around him while taking shelter in the basement of a building, the player told ESPN’s Hannah Storm on Thursday. “I tried to console them in that situation. Just tell them that everything is fine. Just rub their backs and tell them, ‘Everything is going to be okay,’” he said. “It’s very sad,” he told ESPN. “Just for the kids. They are trying to celebrate something, a great achievement for us. “We were just trying to celebrate with them, and for that to happen is very tragic.”
Ray Sanchez, Dakin Andone, Shimon Prokupecz, Josh Campbell, Chris Boyette, Andi Babineau, Rebekah Riess, Sara Smart, Jamiel Lynch, Jillian Sykes, Kyle Feldscher, Matias Grez, Amanda Jackson, Raja Razek, Sarah Dewberry, Hannah Rabinowitz, Holmes de CNN Lybrand y Sara Smart contribuyeron a este informe.
2024-02-16 23:03:00
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