Senator Derrick Simmons urged the public to help investigators after four people were killed and others critically wounded in a Mississippi homecoming shooting.
Mississippi State Senator Derrick Simmons confirmed four people were fatally shot and several others were wounded early Saturday morning (October 11) in downtown Leland, Mississippi following a high school homecoming game.
The Mississippi state senator said the gunfire erupted as dozens gathered to celebrate in the small Delta town of fewer than 4,000 people.
“People were just congregating and having a good time in the downtown of Leland,” Simmons told The Associated Press. “It’s just senseless gun violence. What we are experiencing now is just a proliferation of guns just being in circulation.”
According to Simmons, at least 20 people were injured in the incident. Four of them were transported to a hospital in Greenville before being airlifted to a medical center in Jackson, where they remained in critical condition as of Saturday morning.
The shooting unfolded in the heart of Leland’s downtown, where crowds had gathered after the local high school’s homecoming game. The aftermath, Simmons said, was “very chaotic,” as emergency responders from multiple agencies rushed to the scene. “Police, sheriff’s deputies and ambulances responded from all over,” he said.
Simmons said he received direct updates from the Washington County Sheriff’s Office and other law enforcement agencies investigating the case. As of Saturday, no arrests had been made and no suspects had been publicly identified. “They are on the ground working and I have all the faith in the world that they will get to the bottom of this,” he said.
He urged anyone with knowledge of the shooting to come forward.
Simmons add, “As the state senator for the area, we are asking any and all individuals who might have any information regarding the horrific shooting last night to come forward and provide whatever information they have.”
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