Authorities have reported that none of the teenagers were severely injured and are expected to recover. The investigation is still ongoing, and all the evidence collected is currently being examined.
CLEVELAND — Cleveland police officials provided an update Monday on the weekend shooting in the Lee-Harvard neighborhood that injured seven teens.
Cleveland Police Deputy Chief Jarod Schlacht stated that officers received reports of drag racing in the vicinity of Lee Road and Harvard Avenue shortly after midnight on Sunday.
A caller told police there were approximately 100 people in the area.
The incident unfolded around 12:15 a.m., as law enforcement was en route to the location. Upon their arrival, it was determined that seven teenagers had been wounded by gunshots.
Three of the seven victims were taken to a hospital in private cars, while EMS transported four. According to police, the victims include:
- Two 18-year-old men
- Three 18-year-old women
- One 19-year-old man
- One 19-year-old woman
According to Schlacht, none of the victims sustained life-threatening injuries. Police are planning to conduct interviews with the victims to gain additional information about the incident.
Officials say Shaker Heights police later stopped a vehicle that detectives confirmed had been at the scene of the shooting. Three people were inside the car and police recovered three firearms.
The driver, a 21-year-old man who was not identified by police, was arrested for improperly handling firearms in a motor vehicle.
In total, Schlacht said five firearms have been recovered and two vehicles were towed. He added that it’s too early in the investigation to determine the exact number of shooters, but said it could be more than one.
“The investigation is ongoing and all recovered evidence is being processed currently,” he added.
With the report of drag racing prior to the shooting, Schlacht clarified that the weekend incident was not another example of the street takeovers that plagued the city last fall.
“It’s very important to note that this was not a street takeover. There’s a big difference,” he explained. “Intersections were not taken over. The traffic going through the Lee-Harvard areas was not negatively impacted. Emergency medical vehicles were not delayed.”
In fact, Schlacht says investigators have yet to confirm if drag racing was actually taking place.
The weekend shooting comes on the heels of the city releasing its 2025 summer safety plan. Schlacht was asked if the Cleveland Division of Police had a message for the community.
“We’re going to be out there. Our summer safety plan is in place. This was an unfortunate incident. We’re gonna continue strong. As with everything we readjust, we refocus, we come back to ensure safe, fun summers for the citizens of Cleveland. If citizens see something, say something. Come, call us, officers will respond. Nobody wants this kind of activity in their neighborhood in the area they live, the areas they visit. So if something like this is going on, please make us aware and we’ll come out and we’ll handle it accordingly.”
You can watch Monday’s police briefing in the player below:
Ward 1 Cleveland City Councilman Joe Jones condemned the violence.
“It’s unacceptable. We won’t tolerate it. You can’t come in and do these types of activities in our neighborhood,” said Jones.
He said he’s been in contact with Mayor Bibb’s administration.
“I’m thankful that the administration is going to be working with us to put a police facility in there,” said Jones. “I’ve had an opportunity to talk to the administration as relates to what next steps we need to be more proactive. We know it happens up there. We know it happens often. We need to have some visibility. We need to have police that are going to be at that time, during those periods, on Saturdays and Fridays, in surveillance of that shopping plaza, doing their rounds and making this a part of their rounds. We also need traffic enforcement in our community. That’s one of the things that we need assistance and help on. I’ve talked to the administration, and they’re looking at ways and means to improve traffic enforcement.”
3News also spoke with Maryum Patterson, who works as a level 1 trauma responder at an area hospital. She said she was working the overnight shift when five of the seven victims were rushed in for treatment.
“My first thought was, this can’t be true, I was devastated, I was worried, I was nervous,” said Patterson. “Everyone’s family showed up. Of course, it was confusion, and we just tried to make sure that everyone was updated and notified.”
Patterson also works with the Cleveland Peacemaker’s Alliance, an organization focused on preventing violence.
3News’ Justin McMullen contributed to this report.
