TULSA, Okla. — One person is dead and six others are injured after a shooting in a crowd in downtown Tulsa.
Tulsa police said a large event near 2nd and Elgin turned volatile and chaotic around 12:30 AM on May 4.
Several officers were already on scene, and a call was made for additional officers to assist. As they gathered, someone in the crowd fired shots.
Police said one person was seen firing shots into the crowd. An officer pursued the shooter as they ran away and fired at him during the chase. The shooter was hit by the officer's bullet.
During that chase, police said another officer identified another shooter. That officer fired at the shooter, hitting him. That shooter died at the scene. Tulsa Police identified him as 21-year-old Thurman Wilson.
Police said as of this afternoon, five people have been injured by the two shooters. They were all treated, and none have died. The two officers who fired at the shooters have been placed on administrative leave.
Initial searches found guns abandoned in the parking lot and bullet casings. There is also damage to nearby businesses.
Police believe there may be additional victims. They are asking anyone injured in the shooting to contact them.
On May 5, Tulsa Mayor Monroe Nichols and Police Chief Dennis Larsen held a press conference to discuss the shooting and safety downtown, with the latter starting by saying, "It’s been a busy 48 hours.”
WATCH the full press conference here:
"It's heartbreaking to see young lives impacted by violence," said Larsen. "I'm deeply concerned that we have young individuals who are willing to engage in a gunfight, in the presence of a large number of innocent people, with police officers literally standing feet away."
Larsen told us it was an argument that led to the two people opening fire, an argument that has roots in a 2022 homicide.
We asked the police chief to elaborate on that, and he replied, “No, I can’t.”
Nichols called the event "horrible, very tragic, and frankly preventable."
When 2 News asked him how this could have been prevented, he replied, “Yeah, I mean, I think more broadly, the broader issue around, you know, how we address issues around community violence, right?"
"How are we working with young people in communities that don't lead them down a path where things like this end up happening?" he added.
"So, when I say it's preventable, I don't mean like this event there's something we could have done this weekend necessarily," he emphasized. "I think it's a broader conversation about the conditions of young people in this community.”
"But what leads to young people to decide that guns are the way to solve a dispute?" the mayor added. "I think that is wherein lies what is preventable.”
2 News went downtown and spoke with Reace Wright, who heard the shooting happen.
"Like a gunshot sound that I heard, I couldn't tell if it was a car backfiring or something," said Wright.
Wendy Thomas is a big fan of the Blue Dome District and was surprised to hear what happened.
"Retail establishments, restaurants, bars that are well run, and so it surprises me to hear that there was that kind of chaos last night," said Thomas.
The violence landed on the doorstep of Preston Oberlender, who recalled to 2 News, “I was walking back to my apartment when I saw a huge crime scene with tons of cop cars and crime tape.”
From his balcony on the corner of 2nd and Elgin, he could see a sea of flashing red and blue lights crisscrossed by yellow tape.
“I was shocked and then I was kind of scared,” said Oberlender.
When asked if this made him reconsider living downtown, Oberlender laughed and replied, “Yeah, a little bit. I've only been here for six months, and I'm like, ‘Okay, like, Cherry Street would be cool.”
While he felt downtown was still a safe place to live despite this incident, he said, "This scene obviously speaks volumes, but I highly recommend there needs to be more police officers or security or attention around here."
Larsen said the homicide investigation remains "very active."
Police are looking at body cam and security footage, hoping to gather information. They also want anyone who witnessed this incident or heard something to give them more details, call 918-596-COPS.
"What I think is really important and we have to be careful of," Nichols cautioned, "is that we don't let events where the behavior of just a couple of folks causes all the rest of us to live in any sort of fear."
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