Five people were shot, one of whom was killed, early Monday in downtown Sacramento, police say — the second mass shooting in the city’s core in three months.
Kathy Lester, Sacramento Police Chief, said the shooting occurred outside Mix Downtown nightclub on 16th and L Street as the club was closed.
“What we know now is very limited and we hope to share more as this research progresses,” Lester said. “We ended up having five people who were shot when a nightclub opened up in our neighborhood.
“Unfortunately, one of the five has died, and the other four are being treated in area hospitals,” she said.
Family and friends identified the fatal victim as Greg Najee Grimes, 31, a former soccer star at Boise State University who had returned home to coach and teach at Inderkum High School.
The four surviving victims are in “stable” condition, police said.
Lester said police received the first call about the shooting at 1:51 a.m. and police believe the shooting happened outside of 16th Street, where dozens of blue evidence markers line the roadway and sideways on 16th Street between L and K streets. are placed .
“This appears to be outside and appears to have happened on the street,” Lester said.
There are no suspects in custody and police are calling for the public’s help to determine what may have sparked the violence. Lester said police don’t know if there was more than one shooter.
Lester said the department is looking for tips and videos from the public and posted a QR code on the the agency’s social media pages to enable the public to share any information†
‘I knew it wasn’t fireworks’
Corey Everett, 25, said he was at the Mix club early Monday when he heard some gunshots.
“Someone said they were fireworks, but I knew they weren’t fireworks,” Everett said. “People were running. I was a little scared, but I wasn’t that scared because of a few months. It’s happened before.”
Everett, who arrived at the scene at 6 a.m. to get his car out of the cordoned off area, said police arrived almost immediately.
“They got there fast, super fast,” said Everett, a delivery boy who was celebrating a friend’s birthday at the club on Sunday night.
Everett said he thought the shooting had taken place at the club, that he heard “just a big bang.” Bang Bang Bang.”
Everett said he and his friend were on the second floor of the club and ran to the back when security told them to sit behind tables.
In the end, everyone in the club was let out through back doors, he said.
Bill Keely, a Land Park resident taking a bike ride Monday morning, rolled over to the police tape to ask what had happened, saying shootings like Monday wouldn’t deter him from his regular rides.
“You can’t let this control you,” Keely said. “You try to be as careful as possible. But you can’t let these people control your life.”
The shooting follows a gang shooting in downtown on April 3 that left six people dead and 12 injured. Three suspects – brothers Smiley and Dandrae Martin and Mtula Payton – are charged with murder and other charges in that incident.
“Whether it’s a mass shooting or an altercation that ends in death, the root cause is the same,” Sacramento Mayor Darrell Steinberg said. “The proliferation of weapons and the lack of adequate social and mental health support in our country means more people are armed and ready to pull the trigger. We all know this.
“I fully support our new Police Chief Kathy Lester as she launches a vigorous effort to get guns off the streets and work with community organizations to intervene before anyone shoots. I also implore voters and elected officials at all levels of government to regard gun violence as an emergency that requires an immediate and effective response.”
Joe Davidson of the Bee contributed to this story.
This story was originally published July 4, 2022 5:41 a.m.
Sam Stanton has worked for The Bee since 1991 and has covered a variety of topics including politics, criminal law and breaking news.
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