Shooting at Oakland Juneteenth celebration leaves several injured: police

A Juneteenth celebration in Oakland, California, turned violent when several people were shot, police said.

The Lake Merritt event Wednesday evening was largely peaceful, with up to 5,000 people in attendance, until a spectacle involving “motorcycles and vehicles” took place around 8 p.m. 15 on the north shore of the lake, police said in a news release Thursday. .

A fight broke out in the street from the show and a crowd gathered in the area of ​​the fight, police said.

“During this fight, several shots rang out,” said Paul Chambers, OPD strategic communications manager.

The shooting took place at 8:45 p.m.

Although it was not immediately clear how many people were injured, police said several were struck by gunfire and taken to hospital. No deaths have been reported.

As officers tried to get the crowd to safety, several people punched OPD officers, Chambers said.

At least one person was arrested for assaulting a police officer, he said.

Police did not say how many officers were attacked.

A large police presence included up to two dozen police vehicles and several ambulances at the scene, KTVU-TV reported.

Police said 28 officers and four sergeants were on hand to monitor the event.

Attendees of the celebration were seen verbally addressing police, with some people criticizing the police response, saying they did not react quickly enough when people were injured, KTVU reported.

In 2021, a shooting at a Juneteenth celebration at Lake Merritt left several people injured and a 22-year-old man dead in San Francisco.

Police said the investigation into Wednesday night's shooting is ongoing.