Los Angeles Peck Park shooting: Gunfire from 'multiple shooters' leaves two dead and five injured 

A shooting in Los Angeles has left 2 dead and 5 injured (image via Ringo HW Chiu/AP)
A shooting in Los Angeles has left 2 dead and 5 injured (image via Ringo HW Chiu/AP)

A shooting at Peck Park in San Pedro, Los Angeles, left two dead and five injured on Sunday. ABC reported that one or two shooters may have been involved in the incident. Certain. Witnesses said that there had been an exchange of gunfire between two parties over a dispute in the baseball diamond area of Peck Park, Los Angeles.

One witness, Dwayne Ellis, described the chaos as gunfire broke out.

He said:

"All of a sudden we heard three shots - pow pow pow. Then we heard about 50 or 100 more -- pow pow, boom boom. All kinds of shots. People were running."

Authorities have not yet identified any suspects or potential motivations for the incident. The shooting is still under investigation, and the number of shooters has yet to be confirmed.


Details of the Peck Park, Los Angeles shooting

According to the Los Angeles Fire Department, four males and three females were confirmed to have been taken to the hospital after the shooting. Two of these have since succumbed to their wounds.

The park was crowded at the time, with over 500 people present for a car show. As a result, many fear that the death toll may rise.

At an evening news conference, LAPD Capt. Kelly Muniz said:

"We're continuing to clear the park for evidence and potentially additional victims."

Initially, certain outlets reported the incident as a mass shooting. However, authorities later confirmed it was not an active shooter situation. Rather, they are exploring the possibility that there may have been an exchange of gunfire between more than one shooter.

Muniz added:

"We believe the incident happened due to a) dispute between two parties. We're investigating that there could be more than one shooter."

The shooting occurred during a time when high-profile firearm-related cases have once more emerged on the country's radar. It follows on the heels of mass shootings in Texas, New York and Illinois this year.

The gun violence archive reported that the nation has seen over 300 mass shooting incidents in the first 7 months of 2022 alone. This is compared to 610 mass shootings in 2020, and 692 in 2021. Beyond these high-profile massacres, the nation sees 20,000 firearm-related homicides a year.

Health Data reported that among high-income nations, the US ranks eighth out of 64 nations for homicides by firearms, making it one of the outliers. Various theories have been proposed about why the phenomenon of gun violence is so endemic in the US, with many blaming lax gun control laws. Many Second Amendment activists claim it is due to weak mental health infrastructure.

Regardless of the cause, hopefully a solution will be found and such atrocities will cease.

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