6 injured in series of shootings during Ohio high school reunions

Police are investigating a series of shootings that left at least six people injured during high school reunions in East Cleveland, Ohio.

The East Cleveland Police Department said three shootings occurred within a two-hour period near Shaw High School Monday morning.

“This is where I’m from. I love my town. And this shouldn’t have happened,” said Michael Tucker, a 1984 Shaw High School graduate and current vice president of the Shaw Alumni Association.

Tucker and other volunteers spent Monday afternoon picking up trash along Euclid Avenue from the night before, a mess of broken bottles, discarded food and empty cans left over from a violent evening.

“I said, ‘Man, I have to go there.’ I just felt like I had to come here and help in any way I could,” said David Webb, an East Cleveland resident who is starting a nonprofit to clean up blighted properties in the city.

Shortly after 1 a.m. Monday, East Cleveland officers responded to Euclid Ave and Collamer Street for a man with gunshot wounds. They found a man and a woman who had also been shot in the area.

An hour later, officers near Euclid and Shaw Avenues heard excessive gunfire coming from a Mobil gas station. At least three people were found with gunshot wounds.

At about 2:30 a.m., officers responded a few blocks away on Elwood Road. They found another man with gunshot wounds.

All victims were taken to University Hospitals for treatment. East Cleveland Police said the condition of the victims was unknown Monday afternoon and investigators were searching for suspects.

“It’s terrible. It’s sad,” Webb said.

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The shooting occurred several hours after the end of official events, including the annual Shaw High School alumni reunion.

“Our event ends Sunday at 6 p.m. after the park. So what happens after that on Euclid Avenue, the association has nothing to do with that,” Tucker said.

He celebrated his 40th class reunion over the weekend. The alumni association helped plan events for all classes, including scholarship fundraisers and helping send the Shaw High School band to Hawaii for the Pearl Harbor Memorial Parade.

“What happened has nothing to do with what we do. We love this town. It’s about the kids. It’s about the kids at Shaw High School,” Tucker said.

East Cleveland City Council President Twon Billings said the Shaw High School Reunion is a weekend event that brings together alumni and community members of all ages. He was devastated that what was supposed to be a joyful event turned violent. Billings believes a police shortage played a role in the events that unfolded Monday morning.

“You have to have a presence here,” Billings said. “When you have thousands of people coming through the city and there’s no law enforcement. We only have a few officers. We had to rely on mutual aid, which you see in Cleveland Heights, University Heights and different ambulances and fire departments. It’s a tragic shame that all these people got shot. I hope to God that, you know, these people make it.”

Billings added that East Cleveland leaders need to make combating gun violence a priority to see change in the community.

“We’re already struggling with our budget,” Billings added. “We’re struggling to find police officers to come and work for us. We’re already concerned that we’re going to have this type of, you know, activity.”

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In 2022, the Scripps News Clelevelans reported another shooting in East Cleveland on Labor Day, just outside a bar following a Shaw High School alumni reunion.

East Cleveland police said one person was killed and at least 10 were injured in a shooting in 2022.

Alumni believe that outsiders spoil the positive atmosphere during reunion weekend.

“We are not the ones fighting and shooting here. These are people coming from other areas,” one of the volunteers cleaning up said Monday.

Tucker added: “We have a lot of outsiders who come in just to have fun. And unfortunately we have no control over that.”

He hopes the community, including local business owners, will take a stand against violence.

“There should be more of us here doing this – cleaning up,” he said.

Police are asking anyone with information to contact the East Cleveland Detective Bureau at (216) 681-2162 or Crime Stoppers at (216) 252-7463. Anyone with information leading to the arrest and/or conviction of the person responsible may be eligible for a reward of up to $5,000.

This story was originally published by Catherine Ross and Bryn Caswell at Scripps Cleveland News.