A man walking through a vacant lot was shot dead and a man attending a wedding reception was wounded when gunfire erupted in a Centreville neighborhood Sunday night.
Police responded to calls from people who heard gunshots between Third and Fourth streets in the Ash Quarters neighborhood around 10:30 p.m., Chief Jimmy Ray Reese said.
Kevin Parker, 19, 845 Mangum St., Centreville, was shot once in the head while he was walking in a vacant lot between Third and Fourth streets.
Parker was taken to Field Memorial Community Hospital in Centreville, where he later died.
Also caught in the hail of bullets was 23-year-old Justin Gaulden, 2081 Lewis Gaulden Road, Centreville.
One bullet struck Gaulden in the back of the leg and shattered a bone above his ankle, Reese said.
Gaulden was attending a wedding reception at a house on Fourth Street when he was shot.
Reese said he doesn’t believe Gaulden was the intended victim of the shooter.
“He was a good kid,” he said. “Just an innocent bystander.”
Reese also said that Parker may not have been the shooter’s intended target, either.
“They don’t really need a reason,” Reese said. “They just go and shoot.”
He said Gaulden is recovering from his shattered leg bone but is in otherwise good condition.
As of this morning, police have not identified any suspects.
“We’re working on a couple things right now. Nothing really concrete,” Reese said.
