Authorities in Florida have charged a 15-year-old boy with 11 counts of attempted murder following a mass shooting at a college homecoming party Saturday.
Six adults and six juveniles were injured, all but one by gunshot, in shootings near the campus of Florida Agricultural + Mechanical University (Famu) in Tallahassee.
It was one of five mass shootings that occurred over the weekend — cases in which at least four victims were injured or killed, according to the Gun Violence Archive. The archives, a nonpartisan resource, have recorded 386 such cases in the United States for the year so far.
On Monday, the Tallahassee Police Department posted on Facebook that detectives had arrested a suspect in the Famu shooting two days earlier. The agency identified the suspect as 15-year-old Anthony Rivers III.
Police generally do not identify minor criminal suspects, although the seriousness of the charges against Rivers makes them an exception. He faces 11 charges of attempted second-degree murder and one count of possession of a firearm by an offender after being arrested Sunday, police said.
Tallahassee Police Chief Lawrence Revell said in a statement that the investigation into Saturday’s shooting was ongoing and additional arrests were possible.
“What should have been a weekend of celebration in our community became a night of fear and violence for the victims and their families,” Revell said.
“While this arrest marks significant progress, our work is far from done. We remain committed to holding those responsible to account and getting answers for every family (affected) by this tragedy.”
The department earlier said three of the victims were seriously injured, with one in critical condition in hospital. Nine other people were shot and wounded, the agency said – and another person injured his ankle while trying to escape the gunfire.
The shooting occurred shortly before 8 p.m. Saturday at an intersection near the university’s Bragg Stadium, where a homecoming football game had just ended. Officers arrived quickly on the scene and carried some of the injured people to safety among a mass of people, Revell said.
Police say Rivers opened fire after an altercation between two groups of people who knew each other. None of those hit appeared to be intended targets, Revell said.
Revell on Sunday thanked community members who came forward with cellphone video of the shooting and its aftermath, which he said was “vital to investigative efforts.”
Famu President Marva Johnson released a video message to X on Sunday condemning the “senseless and despicable” violence of the previous night.
“As a neighbor and community partner, we are providing all assistance to the Tallahassee Police Department,” she said. “Our pride, our identity and our future will not be defined by the challenges we face, but by how we respond to them together. »
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