A high school graduate and his father were shot and killed on Tuesday during a shooting that took place after Huguenot High School’s graduation ceremony in Richmond, Virginia.
Shawn Jackson, 18, and Renzo Smith, 36, were identified as the two victims killed, Jackson’s mother and Smith’s wife Tameek Jackson-Smith confirmed to NBC News.
Smith was attending his son’s graduation on the Virginia Commonwealth University campus Tuesday evening when the shooting occurred.
The gunfire erupted at Monroe Park, an open space on the campus, at around 5.15pm local time.
Five other victims, all male and ranging in age from 14 to 58, were injured, Richmond’s interim police chief Rick Edwards said at a press conference.
“We had a total of seven individuals with gunshot wounds, three are considered life-threatening, four are considered non-life threatening,” Mr Edwards said.
There were two other individuals who went to the hospital with injuries “other than gunshots” including a nine-year-old who was struck by a car.
Mr Edwards said police took two suspects into custody, one of which police believe was not involved in the shooting and the other is a 19-year-old who police believe was involved.
As of Tuesday evening, police, in consultation with the Richmond Commonwealth Attorney’s Office, said they would be seeking two second-degree murder charges with more potential charges to follow.
Richmond Public Schools posted a notice to their website, offering their condolences to the victims and families of the shooting and providing resources for those impacted by the graduation shooting.
It also said all Richmond Public Schools would be closed on Wednesday (7 June) and high schools graduations would be cancelled.
Superintendent Jason Kamras appeared in a news conference on Tuesday and said: “I’m tired of seeing people get shot, our kids get shot, and I beg of the entire community to stop.”
