Teen fatally shot
Sonora police investigate Wednesday late-night shooting death of boy in parking lot at high school
A 17-year-old boy died after he was shot late Wednesday night in the parking lot on School Street that’s typically used by Sonora High students.
The Sonora Police Department was investigating the shooting as a murder on Thursday but had yet to announce any arrests by 4:30 p.m. that afternoon. The name of the victim and anyone else suspected of being involved also had not been released.
Police Chief Turu Vanderwiel said in an email Thursday morning that they did not believe the murder was a random act and that the suspect or suspects were known to the victim.
Vanderwiel confirmed that the victim died from his injuries at Adventist Health Sonora after being transported to the hospital by his friend.
The department issued a news release about 5 a.m. Thursday announcing the boy’s death and that a homicide investigation was underway.
Call logs to the department noted that multiple calls were received at 11:46 p.m. reporting five to six shots fired possibly in the Sonora High School parking lot on School Street and three to four vehicles that were involved.
Officers arrived at the scene within a minute but were unable to locate anyone in the area until a friend of the victim called the department shortly after and told them he was currently at the hospital with his friend who had been shot, the release stated.
They responded to the hospital and were told that the boy had died from his injuries, the release stated.
Chad Kelly, who lives near the scene of the murder, said he and his wife were watching TV when they heard gunshots.
“We first heard two pops,” he said. “It was a pop and then a pop, then a brief pause, and then, like, six more shots like pop-pop-poppop-pop-pop.” Kelly said his wife called the police while he went outside and saw two pickup trucks speeding through the parking lot to the exit, one of which he couldn’t make out but believed was grayish in color and another that he identified as a white Toyota.
A newer black SUV followed shortly behind the two pickups with its headlights off and had to slow down to make the corner from the upper lot to the lower lot before speeding up to exit onto the street, Kelly said.
“All three vehicles went straight out of the lot headed towards Washington,” he said. “I saw their headlights through the trees as they sped down Washington towards town.”
Kelly said he didn’t hear any screaming or argument before hearing the shots and seeing the vehicles.
He said he relayed what he saw to the police when they knocked on his door about 3:30 a.m. to take a statement.
“There hasn’t been a homicide downtown since Ricky Roberts, and that shocked the community,” he said. “It’s sad that this kid shot here is never going to get to live his life, just 17 years old. I can’t even imagine what the parents are going through.”
Kelly also said there’s frequently only one light on in the parking lot at night, and he’s heard brawls happen there in the past.
Jeff Lockwood, who also lives near the scene, described the parking lot as a public nuisance.
“There’s always something happening from loud music tailgates, they use it as a race track, and I’ve seen many drug deals,” he said. “They lock up the baseball field but they leave this parking lot open 24/7?”
The gate of the lot was wide open later Thursday morning after police investigators removed yellow crime-scene tape that had been across the entrance since the previous night.
Ed Pelfrey, superintendent of the Sonora Union High School District, said the lot is owned and maintained by the city but the district leases it during the school year for students to use.
Pelfrey said the district, which is currently doing all distance learning until October due to the COVID-19 pandemic, doesn’t currently have an active lease for the lot.
“I don’t know who would be responsible for it right now,” he said.
The district sent out a notification via text message early Thursday morning to assure parents that there was not an active shooter on campus and that police had informed him they didn’t believe there was any further threat to public safety.
Pelfrey said he hasn’t heard of any complaints about the lot since he became the district’s superintendent on July 1, though he encouraged anyone with concerns to reach out to the district.