A 19-year-old boy was shot dead and another person severely wounded at the Capitol Hill in Seattle on Friday morning. The police are said to have entered the cop-free zone after the shootout was reported but instead faced protesters forcing them to put down guns.
According to Seattle police, they received a report of gunshots at Cal Anderson Park at about 2:30 a.m. PDT [0930 GMT]. When they arrived at the spot breaking inside the cop-free zone, they learnt that two people had been shot and were taken to the Harborview Medical Center.
Man Shot Dead
Reports also stated that before the victims were taken to hospital, those on street tried to give them some first aid. They were moved to the hospital shortly by a private car. According to Omari Salisbury, a journalist with Converge Media, the man who was shot dead was an African-American. The second shootout took place 20 minutes after the first one, one block away.
Accused Flee, Still at Large
Reports claimed that among the two victims, a 19-year-old boy had died and the other one was being treated at the hospital but his condition was critical. Police said that the accused had fled the spot and was absconding. The shooting took place at 10th Avenue and East Pine inside the Capitol Hill Organized Protest (CHOP) area that is also known as Capitol Hill Autonomous Zone (CHAZ) or Free Capitol Hill that has been occupied by protesters.
The police had abandoned the East Precinct on June 8, following demonstrations turning violent, and protests intensified against the police force. This is the first time the cops entered the area after June 8. The cops do not have any description of the accused and are trying to get clues by reviewing public-source video and body-camera video. Currently, information about victims has not been revealed and there is no information available about the accused too.
Did Medics Really Help Victims?
A video of medics helping to shift victims to the hospital was shared by Jack Posobiec, the Information warfare analyst. The cops who had tried to enter the area came in with riot shields and firearms while people shouted slogans against the police and asked them to drop their guns.
A video shared by Christopher F Rufo, Director of Discovery Institute's Center on Wealth and Poverty stated a fight ensued in the area that led to the shooting. He also mentioned that allegedly there was heavy drinking throughout the night then a conflict escalated into gunfire.
People in social media also claimed that medics refused to shift victims to the hospital. The teenager bled for at least 30 minutes after the incident before he was shifted to the hospital. This resulted in his death. But these reports of medics not helping the victim are not confirmed by any official sources. The CHOP zone was established and cops chased out of the Precinct following the death of George Floyd.
