DES MOINES, Iowa — A shooting on Court Avenue in Des Moines over the weekend marks the third shooting in that area in the span of three months.
"The evidence we have indicates the suspect had been in an altercation somewhere inside the Entertainment Zone," said Sgt. Paul Parizek with the Des Moines Police Department. "It appears that he left the area, came back with a gun, tried to confront the people he was in an altercation with, fired off a round and struck two bystanders."
According to the Des Moines Police Department, there have been five confirmed shootings and one confirmed report of shell casings being found in the Court Avenue Entertainment District since November 2015:
- November 2015: Police respond to reports of a shooting outside Carbon, a bar on Court Avenue; one person died and another was injured
- Feb. 12, 2017: Police said a man was shot in the foot inside of Carbon.
- July 5, 2020: Police investigated reports of shots being fired in the Court Ave. District area. They discovered shell casings in the road at 3:15 a.m. at Market and Water Street.
- April 10, 2021: Three people are injured in the 200 block of 3rd Street, with one victim identified as the intended victim
- April 25, 2021: Police report two women suffering from gunshot wounds were not the intended targets and were standing inside a building's street-level vestibule along Court Avenue.
- June 13, 2021: Police report two people were shot right outside the new Court Avenue Entertainment Zone on the 100 block of 3rd Street
Community members and business owners in the area say everything that has been happening is concerning.
One man said the scene outside of the fence on Court Avenue Sunday morning was chaotic. The inside of the fence the atmosphere appeared to be safe, but outside there were fights and he described the scene as "having disruptions."
Matt Heiller, another man who frequents the Court Avenue Entertainment District, said hearing of the third shooting is concerning. During the April 10 shooting, he and his friends were in a bar on Court Avenue and they were ushered out of one of the bars as a safety precaution.
"Surprised honestly," Heiller said. "You really don't expect that kind of stuff in this area."
Tipsy Crow is located about a block from where the shooting happened.
Owner Steve McFadden said his bar has never had any incidents like those shootings at his business, and noted having three shootings not far from his bar is scary.
He said when the sounds of shots being fired were heard around 1 a.m. Sunday, his bartenders immediately stopped serving drinks and asked everyone to move as far in on the property as they could.