As hundreds of people gathered in a park following the graduation ceremony in Richmond, Virginia, an 18-year-old student who had just received his diploma and his father were killed when a shooter opened fire.
Following the Huguenot High School graduation ceremony on Tuesday, a shooting outside the city-owned Altria Theatre in the state capital left five other people injured and hundreds of people running away in fear.
According to Tameeka Jackson-Smith, both her son Shawn Jackson, 18 and his father Renzo Smith, 36, perished in the incident. She claimed that during the ensuing confusion, she and Smith’s nine-year-old daughter were struck by a car.
According to Ms. Jackson-Smith, the girl had her leg injuries treated and was later allowed to leave the hospital.
When the family moved outside after watching the graduation, Ms. Jackson-Smith claimed they got lost in a sizable crowd.
“He was so happy — oh my God — because he got to graduate. He worked hard,” she said.
She said she was walking towards her husband and son in a nearby park to reunite when she saw a man run up behind them and start shooting.
“I don’t know if he was shooting at everybody because so many people got shot all over in the area. There were like seven people on the ground,” she said.
Suspect Amari Pollard, 19, was charged on Wednesday morning on two counts of second-degree murder, Colette McEachin, Richmond’s top prosecutor, said.
Pollard said he intends to hire a lawyer, so the court continued the case until a hearing later this month, she said.
Pollard was ordered to be held without bail.
Police believe the suspect knew at least one of the victims.
At least 12 others were injured or treated for anxiety due to the mayhem, according to police.