JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Shots were fired in Jacksonville’s Elevation Lounge early Thursday morning and two men were sent to the hospital.
According to the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office, it all began around 2 a.m. Thursday morning when one of the victims – a man in his early 20s – got in a fight with the suspect, before shots rang out. That’s when that victim was shot in the back, abdomen, and foot. He’s was listed in critical condition at a Jacksonville hospital late Thursday. Another man in his early 30s who was simply in the same general area was shot in the forearm and foot. He also was sent to the hospital, but is expected to survive.
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“Innocent bystander … bullet ain’t got a name on it,” Terry Wilkins told Action News Jax, criticizing the senseless violence.
Wilkins regularly works out at the Planet Fitness right across the street from the Elevation Lounge, telling Action News Jax that it’s certainly unnerving having a shooting like this happen so close by - even more so with a school just across the street.
“Not even for my safety, ‘cause I can defend myself, but [for] the 8-year-old kid who’s catching the bus,” Wilkins highlighted.
The Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office as of Thursday morning said the shooter also ran from the scene and has yet to be identified.
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Anderson Williams, a Norwood resident who lives near the lounge turned crime scene, is now calling on the community to do better in addressing gun violence and putting the weapons away.
“Violence is really never the answer, especially over something that’s very temporary like at a club,” Williams told Action News Jax. “Everybody’s tryna go to the club to have fun and stuff, so I really don’t support it.”
The Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office is also now asking anybody with information to call immediately.
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