Police Chief Todd Henry and public commenters spoke about the April 12 shooting
By KATYA OKS — city@theaggie.org
The Davis City Council met on April 15 to discuss updates concerning the April 12 Community Park shooting.
Todd Henry, the chief of the Davis Police Department (DPD), briefly recounted Saturday’s events, the police response and investigation.
“About three o’clock in the afternoon, officers were near F Street and Community Park where they heard shots come out,” Henry said. “[Police officers] obviously immediately responded. There were three individuals who were injured by gunfire. They had to triage the event; There [were] several hundred people involved in the event that was inside the park. Most of these individuals had no idea that the shooting had occurred. The officers quickly were able to bring in medical aid — Davis Fire Department and paramedics arrived on scene [and] were able to treat those individuals and transport them immediately.”
Henry then transitioned into reiterating that the investigation of the shooting remains a top priority for the police department. Henry explained how the Davis police force has collaborated with regional forces to do so.
“We are really utilizing a lot of regional sources, agencies in our immediate area, Department of Justice [and the Federal Bureau of Investigation] (FBI),” Henry said. “We are absolutely capitalizing on all those relationships to ensure that we bring to bear any possible resources that’s going to help us with this investigation.”
Henry described the progression of the case, emphasizing that the nature of the incident has made it more difficult.
“This investigation is complex because [of] the dynamic of it being in the park, because there was music there, because there were so many people,” Henry said. “We have very few people who were able to provide information as to who was actually involved in the shooting.”
Henry provided a reason as to why the identity has not been released yet.
“Obviously, there are individuals that we believe are probably involved, but it is critical for this investigation — the integrity of this investigation — that we validate that information to some degree, that we feel confident in it,” Henry said. “Additionally, we do not want to put out information that somebody may be involved when, in fact, they were not. So, we are delicately trying to navigate that as we provide information to the community, and in a fashion that is timely without jeopardizing the investigation itself.”
The floor then opened for public comment concerning the shooting. One individual in particular who spoke is the mother of a child who was at the Davis Little League game on the day of the shooting, which was happening right across Community Park during the shooting.
“I dropped [my son] off at two o’clock for his game,” the mother said. “He has a broken foot, [he is] 11 years old, […] he wanted to cheer on his team. […] [I] got a phone call from his coach saying, ‘Your child is fine, there was a shooting across the street. I’m taking him to my house.’”
The mother then talked about the prevalence of unsanctioned events during the day and the importance of security during days such as Picnic Day.
“This fraternity started promoting this event on February 25, if not before,” the mother said. “They had already promoted who the performer was going to be on that Instagram post. […] Haiti Babii, he has over 726,000 listeners a month for a free concert in our town of Davis. I’m not quite sure how that should even be allowed, considering we are stretched in between Picnic Day […] and a huge party that’s going to be happening at that park.”
The mother concluded by urging the city to take preventive measures in order for such incidents not to happen again.
“There was a shooting across the street from the Davis Little League field, where tons of kids were at and are still very traumatized,” the mother said. “Ask any of the teachers at the school. It is not okay at all, so I’m hoping that the city does something to protect these kids in years to come.”
In addition, Beth Bourne, a UC Davis employee, spoke at the public comment for the discussion of the Community Park shooting. Bourne expressed her concerns over the violence in the town and believes that the leadership is responsible.
“Our mayor actually said, just a few weeks ago, […] at a big rally in Sacramento, and there were children there, and he was saying, ‘Fuck you President Trump,’ setting an example of what it means to be a good person and to respect democracy,” Bourne said. “And there was a shooting, I believe, partly because we have leadership that doesn’t recognize that people should be treated kindly.”
Bourne also reflected on an earlier incident that occurred on the UC Davis campus between students and Turning Point USA organizers.
“I was assaulted on the UC Davis campus by people holding signs that said [‘all cops are bastards,’] and ‘cops off campus,’” Bourne said. “You had a chance to make a statement, Mayor, and instead you did nothing, and you’re getting what you deserve.”
Mayor Bapu Vaitla addressed the concerns that were brought forth by community members, specifically concerns with permitting events happening on Picnic Day.
“It can’t stop [shootings and other incidents by] just figuring out permitting procedures,” Vaitla said. “It’s got to be a conversation with the university about what we do about the fact that our population effectively doubles, and even if we had many, many more officers, we couldn’t clear the unsanctioned events that are happening all over town on Picnic Day. […] We got to sit down with all of our partners who are involved in Picnic Day and figure out how to make this event something different than what it is.”
Vaitla concluded the section by reiterating the importance of moving forward from this incident.
“I know that there’s a lot of very justified fear and anger in the community,” Vaitla said. “You’re right to come with your questions and your comments, and like my colleagues said, we’re all up here pledged to serve you […] we’ve got to figure out how to serve you better, and especially the children of the city.”
Written By: Katya Oks — city@theaggie.org
