Eight People Shot in Two Separate Incidents Over the Weekend

(KNSI) — Police in St. Paul are investigating after eight people were shot over two days.

Friday, following a funeral reception for Devin Scott, who was fatally stabbed at Harding High School, several shots were fired from a car into the Wellstone Center where the gathering was being held. Scott’s family had already left the center when the shots were fired. Photos on social media showed the glass on the front doors shot out. Three people were shot, and all of them suffered non-life-threatening injuries. Authorities say it appears to have been a drive-by shooting, with a vehicle involved later found crashed about one mile away.

Saturday evening, five more people were shot – two fatally – also during a funeral gathering at an apartment on the 500 block of North Dale Street. The two shootings are not believed to be related. Police were reportedly dispatched to the area for a large argument with one person shot. The other three victims were hospitalized. One was in critical condition — the other two sustained non-life-threatening injuries.

The two victims are the fourth and fifth homicides of 2023 in St. Paul. That’s down from the nine homicides at this time last year, but all of them have happened within the last two and a half weeks. No arrests have been made in the last two shootings.

Minnesota Governor Tim Walz tweeted his anger over the weekend shootings, saying they’re “unacceptable” and that he will increase public safety spending and do something about getting illegal guns off the streets. Community members responded to the tweet blaming the judges and court system for spinning violent felons out the door with light or suspended sentences, putting them back on the streets where they can continue to commit crime, knowing there will be little in the way of accountability or harsh punishment.

The gun violence in St. Paul this weekend is unacceptable. I’m committed to increasing public safety funding, getting illegal guns off the streets, and addressing gang activity to curb the cycle of violence.

— Governor Tim Walz (@GovTimWalz) February 26, 2023