2 dead, 6 hurt in Texas shooting
Event was billed as a homecoming
DALLAS — Two men died after someone opened fire at a crowded party about midnight Saturday near Greenville, Texas, as nearby Texas A&M University Commerce celebrated homecoming weekend.
Sgt. Jeff Haines of the Hunt County Sheriff’s Office said Sunday afternoon that eight people were shot — two of them fatally — and six were injured while trying to flee. Four of the wounded were reported to be in critical condition and another victim’s condition was described as good.
Authorities said they were looking for a single gunman, but hadn’t identified a suspect or received a detailed description of the person from witnesses at the site of the party just west of Greenville, about 60 miles northeast of Dallas.
The party, which had been promoted as a homecoming event, but wasn’t school-sanctioned, was attended by about 750 people, mostly in their teens and early 20s. Hunt County Sheriff Randy Meeks said more than 20 of them had been questioned by early Sunday about what they saw.
The two people killed were both males, Meeks said. Family members identified one of the victims to local media as Kevin Berry Jr., 23, of Dallas.
After a vigil for Berry on Sunday night at a Dallas park, at least one person opened fire. Mourners and reporters took cover and at least one vehicle was struck by bullets, according to local media reports. There were no immediate reports of injuries.
Meeks said the first person the gunman shot may have been his intended target and the rest of the victims may have been fired upon randomly, the sheriff said.
Hunt County deputies who were investigating complaints about illegal parking at the venue arrived about 20 minutes before the shooter opened fire.
They were questioning a person outside the venue when they heard gunshots coming from the back of the building.
At first, they could not tell whether the shots were fired inside or outside, but they found the two men who had been killed when they entered the building, authorities said.
The sheriff said the partyturned into “complete chaos” as people tried to flee the gunman, with some breaking through windows and others trying to squeeze through the venue’s front door four abreast.
The gunman fled during the commotion, and witnesses had not given authorities a detailed description of him or any suspect vehicle. The sheriff pleaded with partygoers to provide any information they could about the shooter.