CLEVELAND — The Cleveland Division of Police is investigating overnight shootings that left two people dead and several injured at different locations across the city.
Cleveland Police Chief Dorothy "Annie" Todd held a news conference Monday afternoon to provide additional details about what happened. Watch below:
Luther Avenue
According to Cleveland Police, residents were holding an "unsanctioned" block party in the 5900 block of Luther Avenue when officers were called to respond to shots fired and people hurt.
Todd said that a preliminary investigation indicates that an argument broke out just after midnight, and multiple people started fighting and shooting. Around 100 people are believed to have been in attendance.
A man identified as 27-year-old DeAndre Houston died in the shooting, and five other people were injured:
- 32-year-old man
- 30-year-old man
- 27-year-old woman
- 19-year-old woman
- 18-year-old woman
Three of those victims remain hospitalized, and two were treated and released, Todd said.
"It's so unfortunate when a fight breaks out, and you solve that fight by gunfire," Todd said. "You know that is not the way to solve any altercation, by gunfire. "There's not only the people who are at the party, but there's people at their homes sleeping, and you don't know where the bullets are going to go."
Todd said one of the shooters, or potential shooters, fleeing the area, shot and killed a dog when they went into a neighboring yard, and the animal confronted them while protecting its owner's property.
Video captured from a News 5 photographer shows about 100 evidence markers on the ground and officers collecting dozens of shell casings.
Our photographer spotted more than 50 people running from the area when he arrived.
Dion Barksdale said he witnessed the overnight shooting.
“Getting ambushed, like that’s pretty much it was, ambushed. Shots fired from left, right, perpendicular like everywhere," Barksdale said.
Barksdale said he was grazed in the leg during the block party shooting.
Yet, he helped a woman who was shot in the arm.
“I just took my shirt off and like applied pressure to her wound just in case. She was going in and out of consciousness I told her to squeeze my hand," Barksdale said.
During the news conference, Todd said that around 80 shell casings were recovered from the scene from various weapons.
"That's a lot of gunfire," said Todd. "Can you imagine being in your home, and you have to encounter something like that. So, we encourage people — don't resolve conflicts with gunfire."
Due to an influx of calls, first responders had to delay some emergency calls since they were "stacked up."
Todd said that the shooting remains under investigation, and detectives are working to collect surveillance footage of the party and subsequent chaos.
Parkgate Avenue
In a separate incident, officers responded to the 10000 block of Parkgate Avenue around 1 a.m. for shots fired.
Todd said an altercation between two people escalated into the shooting, which killed 34-year-old De'Ante Kidd.
According to the chief, officers received information from nearby residents that the shooter had gone into a house.
SWAT was called in to clear the home, but the shooter was nowhere to be found, Todd said.
Police are still looking for the shooter, and no further information has been released.
Garden Valley
Late Sunday night, a 13-year-old boy was injured in a shooting on Carson Avenue in the Garden Valley neighborhood in Cleveland. Cleveland EMS said the boy is in stable condition.
Cleveland Metropolitan Housing Authority Police haven't released any additional information about the shooting.
On Monday, News 5 spoke with Mike Polensek, who is chair of the Cleveland City Council Safety Committee, about the overnight shootings.
“We see the possibilities in this city. It’s a great city, great neighborhoods, but the level of violence is just totally unacceptable,” Polensek said.
Polensek is calling for the Ohio State Highway Patrol to come back to Cleveland.
“When they came in last year, they didn’t play any games from the standpoint of traffic enforcement," Polensek said. "They laid the law down. What did they get? Outstanding warrants, contraband, guns; it was unbelievable in a two-week period, what they did was incredible."
