Man shot during candlelight vigil for Renton homicide victim
RENTON, Wash. - A 23-year-old man was shot Saturday night during a candlelight vigil for the victim of a deadly shooting the day before, Renton police said.
The incident began at about 9:45 p.m. Saturday as a number of people gathered at 330 SW Sunset Blvd. for a vigil to remember the victim who was found shot to death there inside a burning car on Friday morning.
An altercation of some kind broke out during the vigil, which escalated into gunfire.
A 23-year-old man from Las Vegas who was attending the vigil was shot three times. He was rushed to the hospital, but officials said his injuries don't appear to be life-threatening.
Police responded to the scene immediately, but a suspect has not yet been identified.
Investigating officers are still trying to determine the exact nature of the altercation at the vigil. But police said the shooting does not appear to be random.
"At this time it is not believed that the shooting is in retaliation for the previous homicide," said Detective Pete Kordel of the Renton police.
In the earlier homicide on Friday morning, police found the bullet-riddled body of a 26-year-old Renton man inside a small Mini Cooper that caught fire and rolled down a hill from the apartment complex at 330 SW Sunset Blvd.
Investigators said someone had fired 16 shots at the victim in the Mini Cooper. The victim's car then backed down the embankment, where it was consumed by flames.
Police say the man was likely dead with his foot on the gas pedal, which caused the engine to rev at high speed until the car overheated and burst into flames.
The incident began at about 9:45 p.m. Saturday as a number of people gathered at 330 SW Sunset Blvd. for a vigil to remember the victim who was found shot to death there inside a burning car on Friday morning.
An altercation of some kind broke out during the vigil, which escalated into gunfire.
A 23-year-old man from Las Vegas who was attending the vigil was shot three times. He was rushed to the hospital, but officials said his injuries don't appear to be life-threatening.
Police responded to the scene immediately, but a suspect has not yet been identified.
Investigating officers are still trying to determine the exact nature of the altercation at the vigil. But police said the shooting does not appear to be random.
"At this time it is not believed that the shooting is in retaliation for the previous homicide," said Detective Pete Kordel of the Renton police.
In the earlier homicide on Friday morning, police found the bullet-riddled body of a 26-year-old Renton man inside a small Mini Cooper that caught fire and rolled down a hill from the apartment complex at 330 SW Sunset Blvd.
Investigators said someone had fired 16 shots at the victim in the Mini Cooper. The victim's car then backed down the embankment, where it was consumed by flames.
Police say the man was likely dead with his foot on the gas pedal, which caused the engine to rev at high speed until the car overheated and burst into flames.
I know that in England guns are illegal. I don't know the statistics about gun violence there though. I think what would be most challenging if the "ban guns" idea took hold here is that because there are already so many guns, suddenly all the people who legally and safely own guns would lose their guns but the criminals wouldn't.  If there had *always* been a gun ban and there just weren't very many guns accessible to begin with things would be different because there wouldn't already be so many actual guns in the country. So what that statistics are for gun violence in England say - wouldn't be a logical assumption of what statistics would be here right after guns were outlawed. It isn't an even comparison.
If everyone had guns the good people would stongly out weigh the bad people. If someone tried coming into my home and robbing me or to harm my family it's good to know we are protected rather than waiting for 5 minutes for the police to arrive!! Stop with the gun ban b/s ... it gets old
Once again a shooting has opened up the gun/ant gun argument. Just one question, which countries have the strictest gun control?
Renton, Ahead of the Curve. In shootings, that is.
What the hell is WRONG with people?! Is nothing sacred?!
@dancingnights999 nope, not even world of war craft...
Shoot out on the freeway, shots fired at a vigil. And the gun folks will say again "if just one other person was carrying, this could've been prevented". C'mon. Does anyone still assume that at least a few in any crowd of people is NOT carrying? Your theory is proven wrong day after day after day, and you still believe more guns are the answer. That is simply insane. This is my country, too; and I'm sick of guns.Â
Move. Take away gun rights and Americans/gun owners WILL retaliate against our own military. You could move to Europe... I hear they do have the right to have trap guns for hunting though so you might just move to a third world country where people have no right to carry and defend them selfs, family, and property using weapons.
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Stop trying to take Americans right to own a gun. If gun rights were taken away there would be 1000 x more illegal guns on the streets.
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What about law inforcement?? Should they just use their bare hands to apprehend suspects that are armed and a danger to others??
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c'mon...think about it a little bit more
every family with a kid living in the home who is gang affiliated should be stripped of any state or federal welfare and if they are illegal they all should be immediately deported. Why are we paying welfare benefits to people who raise sociopaths? In NYC they threw out anyone in the welfare towers who had felonies in the family and they place calmed down overnight. No more innocent kids shot on the playgrounds. No more old ladies knocked in the head for their welfare checks. Why so we pay for this? Boggles the mind. Belonging to a gang should be illegal for any age.
Too bad we tore the Kingdome down. We need an enclosed concrete structure so we can encourage these "people" to have more vigils.
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This area of Renton isn't the best, but I live in Renton and I don't experience ANY of these problems. Don't lump us in with South Seattle
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 @leavingseattle There is some sort of this kind if behavour no matter where you go. But good luck to you.
 @leavingseattle There's the door *points*. Watch your tush as you go through
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What are you? Five years old?
Another band of the diversity rainbow shows its true colors......
So a shooting happens and someone gets killed, so there's a vigit, then there's another shooting there? Good grief! And I just found out about the homicide from checking my block on my crime reports site and I saw the homicide link right at the corner of the map! Just plain f'n crazy. That Skyway corner of Renton just keeps getting more crazy!
We are gathered here today in the presence of God to remember BANG, BANG, bang
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Another day in da hood!
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Hello!?! Where are the community activists? The outrage? Community involvement?
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Instead of payback try turning the other cheek.Â
These communities really need to step up to the challenge of dealing with the small number of youth who pursue this violence and the professional activists need to either get directly involved in intervention or shut the H up about making everything racial and that we all need to look the other way with regard to the violence perpetrated by these young men. Legislators and prosecutors need to take the worst of the worst out of circulation and the electorate needs to cough up the money to give the reachable youth some constructive outlets. Communities that try to put all the responsibility on the police while simultaneously accusing them of racism are wasting everyone's time.Â
Stupid gang bangers. Taught growing up what special little flowers they are, how everyone is a winner and there is no consequences for bad behavior.
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Bring back corporal punishment in the schools and let the parents actually parent instead of holding them hostage with the, "if you look at me wrong, I'll call 911!"
 @Howard Beale excuse me not to be rude..but that was my bestfriend.....if youreally wanna know he was a positive individual......he left the gangs alone and focussed on taking care of his five year old daughter his 60 year old handicapped mother and my grandfather who has dementia he was actually on his way home from dropping me off from work.......he touched alotta ppl...i was with him one time and he pulled a gangbanger to the side and told him that it wasnt worth it and scared the hell outta the lil boy...that boy came to the vigil and let everyone know that because of my partner he is goin to college and he left the gang life alone....its easier to call someone something when you dont know them.....pls be mindful of the things you say about others loved ones...i know it was in the heat of the moment just like what happened last night at the vigil but just be mindful...thank you and god bless
 @Demarcus Hyfr Caviness im sry for ur loss i wish u and his family the best and hope  that time heals the wounds but u guys will always have him with u watching over u god bless
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@Howard Beale It's true in some cultures where the children are coddled and parents make excuses for their kids. These parents are the ones who yell at and threaten the teachers who call the parents about their kids' bad behavior in school. Instead, the parents go after the teachers when they SHOULD BE disciplining their children!!
Also, some kids join gangs b/c their upbringing is so frought w/ parents doing drugs, beating their kids, etc.
The only answer is to enforce our laws, make NEW LAWS that are harsher, and to educate our kids so they won't turn to gangs. It comes down to accountability on the parents' part, and funding schools so students will be more successful. Can't teach on a shoestring.
 @Howard BealeÂ
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Actually, a lot of gangbangers are beaten brutally as kids. Even just in order to join their gang in the first place, they have to be "jumped in," which is a lot more brutal than any kind of corporal punishment a school could give. And Mississippi - a state where corporal punishment is still used in public schools - has a fairly bad gang problem, despite having no major cities (Jackson is mid-sized).Â
@Whobeke @Howard Beale Lots of kids grow up in bad neighborhood and don't become killers. No excuses.
So you want to stick with "time outs" to slap these kids into shape?
 @Mumblix GrumphÂ
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I'm not sure what you mean. This particular case involves attempted murder; I'd like to see at least life without parole for a crime of that nature. A lot of gangbanger kids are out of school by the 8th grade or earlier anyway. Schools simply aren't going to determine the life-course of a kid like that, and seeking salvation through the school system - ANY school system - is pretty much hopeless.Â
"But police said the shooting does not appear to be random." It seems all shootings these days are random.Or is it that I see it, randomly spread through out the news on a daily basis. Its not the gun that worries me its the person who has it. Idiots!
@Cindertang The shootings always have a target but because these kids can't hit the broadside of a barn many people are killed who they don't aim at.
Someone singing kumbaya out of key, no doubt.
Great GAWD! Who's (non)bright idea was it to BRING A GUN TO A VIGIL?? Especially of someone who died by being shot at??
 @DMT The killer maybe?
i say pass on the gangster vigils
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at least make em work for their shots
When you can buy guns like you buy groceries, it is that big a surprise that such a thing is happening?
Who says the shooter bought the gun? I didn't see that in the story.
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 @NickM1979 Well, That is a stupid comment. I'm sure these guys didn't obtain these guns legally anyway.
 @burgs No, they probably stole them from an NRA member. Most guns on the street start out legal. Funny how I read about more gun deaths related to accidents and domestic violence on the "law abiding" side then I ever find online about people defending themselves. More guns and easy gun access do not make us safer. And I am not going to buy into how starting World War Three on a sidewalk in the U District with an armed robber is an awesome idea that benefits the community based on stupid criminal-meets-equally-stupid-gun-owner. Possessing a weapon entails far more responsibility than a lot of owners can muster, apparently.Â
 @bobalouie So, a link to Gun Owners of America "research" and another to Second Amendment Foundation drivel. That's your response? And "Citizen" is in denial? How about addressing the issue of gun ownership among criminals? Did they manufacture and then just give the weapons to these people? Could they pass a background check? Of course not. Guns were likely originally sold to a "responsible gun owner" who then either resold them illegally or had them stolen because they failed to secure them. And for that, the rest of society pays the price... over and over again. Every. Single. Day. You are the one in denial.
You don't google too well do you? Here's a couple links for ya since yer in denial.
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http://gunowners.org/sk0802.htm
http://www.saf.org/
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 @Citizen#3457899654 "I read about more gun deaths related to accidents and domestic violence on the "law abiding" side then I ever find online about people defending themselves."
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There are more resources out there. It is also very hard to get statistics on events, that are most likely never reported, than a statistic that can be arrived at through counting dead bodies. Weak attempt at a strawman argument. Everything about your post is based on assumption. Leave the house much?
@NickM1979 What store is that? I have never seen a baby food/guns isle at Safeway. I must not be paying attention.
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@uplink Hi. actually, you can buy a long gun at Walmart which also sells baby food, diapers, tampons, and something some people are forgetting about ... condoms!
 @HonkeyCat  @uplink ...not that you can purchase it without a background check. WalMart instituted that quite a few years ago.
Just when you think it is safe to attend a candlelight vigil...
You know it's bad when...
The tragic irony isn't lost on me, wot in the 'ell is happening to this country? Oh, the decline of our empire that's what.
A candlelight for the candlelight?? Good grief.
I think I'm beginning to see the police department's strategy here, they realized these guys will just all cull themselves out.
 @ducati True, thinning of the herd.
True legal owning gun afficianados at work here- shoots 'victim' three times and the 'victim' has only injuries that don't appear to be life threatning.
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 @Headwrench Small caliber guns are easier to conceal.