OAKLAND, California — A Juneteenth celebration turned violent when several people were shot, police in Oakland, California said.
Wednesday night’s Lake Merritt event was largely peaceful, with as many as 5,000 people in attendance, until a sideshow involving “motorcycles and vehicles” took place at Bellevue and Grand avenues around 8:15 p.m. on the north side of the lake, police said. said in a news release Thursday.
From the sideshow, a fight broke out in the street and a crowd gathered near the fight, police said.
“Several shots rang out during that struggle,” said Paul Chambers, OPD strategic communications manager. The shooting took place at 8:45 p.m. While it was not immediately clear how many people were injured, police said several people were struck by gunfire and taken to a hospital, police said. There were no reports of deaths.
As officers tried to move the crowd to safety, several people struck OPD officers, Chambers said. At least one person has been arrested for assaulting an officer, he said. The police do not want to say how many officers were attacked.
There was a large police presence with no fewer than twenty police vehicles and several ambulances on site. KTVU-TV reports. Police said 28 officers and four sergeants were on site to monitor the event.
The mood was described as chaotic and confrontational. Celebration participants were seen speaking out with police, with some people criticizing the police response and saying they did not respond quickly enough when people were injured, KTVU reported.
In 2021, a shooting at a Juneteenth celebration at Lake Merritt injured six people and killed a 22-year-old San Francisco man.
Police say the investigation into the shooting Wednesday evening is still ongoing.