DETROIT (WXYZ) — A man is in critical condition Friday night after a shooting incident involving officers as people gathered in Detroit for a repass honoring the life of a woman recently killed in a hit-and-run crash.
The shooting happened around 7:05 p.m. on Van Dyke Avenue near Emily Street.
The Detroit Police Department said fights broke out inside the building during the event and “spilled out into the street.” DPD Assistant Chief Charles Fitzgerald said an initial call came in about the fights but then was upgraded to shots fired.
When officers approached the scene, they saw a man with a gun in his hand. They said the man started squeezing something in the air. He was then taken into custody.
Police said they saw a second man with a weapon. An officer briefly chased him and shots were fired. That man was shot in the stomach and hospitalized in critical condition.
His gun was taken into custody after it was found near his feet.
It’s unclear at this time if an officer shot him or if he was shot before being approached by police.
Fitzgerald said the officer fired about three to four shots. Police will be reviewing video footage to confirm more about the shooting.
“We’re really, really early in the investigation, but this was a family event,” Fitzgerald said. “The family was fighting and right now, we’ve got one in custody for a gun. We’ve got another gun in custody. We have a man at a local hospital in critical condition.”
Police were told there were some disagreements during the day before shots were fired.
The hit-and-run crash happened Oct. 1 in Detroit on Grand River Avenue and Patton Street. Investigators are still asking for the public’s help with looking for the blue Ford Explorer that hit the deceased women.
“You should come celebrate your love one’s life and what they did, not do what they did here tonight,” Fitzgerald said.
He described the crowd as “very large.”
“It’s impulse control. It’s conflict resolution. It’s this strange culture that you will not disrespect me,” Fitzgerald said. “You’re talking about people’s lives… this giant fight broke out. Again, we’re celebrating someone’s life, not fighting in the middle of Van Dyke and shooting each other in the middle of Van Dyke. It’s tough. It’s unfortunate that it’s come to this. We bring guns to these things. We don’t need guns at a repass — celebrate this woman’s life. And then it turned into this and it’s tragic."
