The names of both people killed in a shooting at a college homecoming party in Texas this weekend have been revealed. Meanwhile, local officials were still looking for the shooter, who fled the Texas A&M University-Commerce party after also injuring 12 others in the shooting that took place off-campus near the north Texas city of Greenville around midnight on Saturday.
The Commerce Journal identified the two men who were killed in the shooting as Byron Craven, Jr., and Kevin Berry, both 23-years-old. It was unclear if either of them attended Texas A&M University-Commerce, which was celebrating its homecoming festivities this past weekend.
#GentleGiant #ShootingVictim #A&MCommerce #Homecoming family of Byron Craven say he was celebrating b-day night shot&killed at #Greenville party – his parents are devastated . @CBSDFW today pic.twitter.com/6cbxyLIraS
— STEVE PICKETT (@STEVEPICK11) October 28, 2019
Craven’s mother confirmed to the Commerce Journal that her son was killed on his 23rd birthday.
“He just wanted to have fun,” she said. “I seen my baby leave with his suitcase. And now I have his suitcase but not him.”
Berry “was a father of two from Dallas with a reported third child on the way,” the Commerce Journal reported.
***BREAKING***
The family of Kevin Berry tells @wfaa that the 23-year-old is one of the 2 victims who died after a gunman opened fire at a large homecoming party in Greenville last night.
Berry was a father of 2, and had another child on the way.
He is a Dallas native. pic.twitter.com/nisX22SN63
— Matt Howerton (@HowertonNews) October 27, 2019
The shooting was the latest instance of deadly gun violence in North Texas, which has had a spate of recent shootings that have included the death of Atatiana Jefferson, who was killed in Fort Worth earlier this month when a police officer shot her through her bedroom window over what cops said was a perceived threat.
Politifact determined that gun violence in Texas causes “roughly one death every 2.8 hours.”
The gun violence continued Sunday night at a candlelight vigil for Berry, where gunshots broke out. “Dallas police said no one was injured but several vehicles were reported damaged,” the Associated Press reported.
***BREAKING***
Following Kevin Berry’s vigil, a shootout happened in the parking lot of St. Augustine Park.
Everyone scattered. My photographer and I headed for the trees and took cover.
I took video once I got safe. We heard DOZENS of gunshots. pic.twitter.com/XDlFTGHemc
— Matt Howerton (@HowertonNews) October 28, 2019
The death of Craven and Berry came just weeks after Joshua Brown was killed in Dallas following his key testimony in the murder trial of Amber Guyger, the former police officer who was convicted earlier this month for killing Botham Jean in his own home.
Police immediately described Brown as a drug dealer killed when a transaction went wrong. But one aspect of that investigation that has seemingly gotten lost in the mix is that just like the shooter at the Texas A&M-Commerce homecoming party, Dallas police have not been able to find the person they suspect of killing Brown. Only time will tell if the Texas A&M-Commerce shooting suspect will enjoy the same fate.
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