STOCKTON, Calif. (AP) — Authorities in California urged witnesses to a fatal shooting at a boy’s birthday party to come forward as the search for a suspect stretched into another day.
Three children, ages 8, 9 and 14, and a 21-year-old man were killed Saturday when gunfire erupted at a banquet hall in Stockton where at least 100 people had gathered, San Joaquin County Sheriff Patrick Withrow said. Detectives believe the shooting continued outside and there may have been multiple shooters.
He also said eleven people were injured, with at least one in critical condition. No one had been arrested as of Sunday evening, and the sheriff urged anyone with information to contact his office with tips, cell phone video or witness accounts.
“This is a time for our community to show that we’re not going to put up with this kind of behavior, when people are just going to come in and kill kids,” Withrow said. “And so if you know something about this, you have to come forward and tell us what you know. If not, you just become complacent and think this is acceptable behavior.”
Sheriff’s spokeswoman Heather Brent said earlier that investigators believe it was a “targeted incident.” Officials did not elaborate on why authorities believe it was intentional or who may have been targeted. She said that investigators will welcome any information, “even rumours.”
Roscoe Brown said the party was in honor of his brother’s nephew, who turned 2 and was not injured. Brown, who works for the city of Stockton’s Office of Violence Prevention, was in Arizona when he learned of the shooting and drove straight to the scene. He said his niece and nephew were shot, and he knows several other victims. He did not have information about their conditions.
“Who would come and do that to some kids, you know?” Brown told The Associated Press after a vigil organized by faith leaders to honor the dead and pray for the wounded. “You can’t shoot a party. That’s nonsense. A children’s party, at that.”
Emmanuel Lopez told the Los Angeles Times that his brother, 21-year-old Susano Archuleta, was shot in the neck and died at the scene. Lopez said his 9-year-old daughter was shot in the head but survived. He did not give details about what led to the shooting.
Stockton is a city of 320,000 residents about 80 miles (130 kilometers) east of San Francisco. With 54 homicides in 2024, Stockton’s homicide rate was significantly higher than the state average. As of October, there have been 34 this year, according to city data.
Hours after the shooting, the Stockton Police Department arrested five people, including a juvenile, on gun and gang-related charges. There was no indication that the arrests were connected to the killings at the banquet hall, the sheriff said.
Mayor Christina Fugazi told reporters that the 8-year-old victim attended a local school and had a parent who worked for the Stockton Unified School District. The Mayor said that the councilors will be available this week in the city’s schools.
She expressed regret at the loss of such young victims.
“They should be writing their Christmas lists right now. Their parents should be out shopping for them for Christmas. And for them to think their lives are over. I can’t even begin to imagine what these families are going through. It breaks my heart,” Fugazi said on Sunday.
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Weber reported from Los Angeles. Associated Press writer Ed White in Detroit contributed to this report.