IOWA CITY, Iowa (KCRG) – Nearly 30 clergy members from the Iowa City region released a statement following a shooting at the Ped Mall, urging community members to come together to heal and condemning racist comments online.
“To post racist and hateful comments in response to the events of April 19 is completely unproductive, unhelpful, unkind, and wrong. As faith leaders in this community, we unequivocally condemn both the violence on April 19 and the violence of online racist comments,” the statement said in part.
Police are searching for a suspect accused of shooting into a crowd at the Iowa City Ped Mall on Sunday.
Suspect faces attempted murder charges
17-year-old Damarian Jones, of Cedar Rapids, faces several charges including five counts of attempted murder, three counts of willful injury causing serious injury, two counts of willful injury causing bodily injury, and one count of going armed with intent.
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Police say Jones was involved in a fight at 1:45 a.m. Sunday morning with 40 other people. In a lull in the fight, police said Jones retrieved a gun from another person and then fired six shots into the crowd, hitting five people.
None of the five victims were part of the fight, according to police. A female who was shot in the head remains in critical condition.
Community members say they still feel safe
People living and working in downtown Iowa City say they still feel safe despite the shooting. Iowa City police say the number of shootings have trended down over the last year.
University of Iowa Police will send four additional officers to help patrol downtown during peak hours Friday and Saturday nights.
Cooper Brown, co-owner of the Kitty Corner Social Club, said what happened last Sunday was rare and a random act of violence.
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“Even then the circumstances I don’t think are likely to be replicated. This has not changed how I feel about downtown Iowa City in any capacity. I think anyone who is freaking out about the safety of Iowa City probably doesn’t frequent it,” Brown said.
Police have not released any new information about the ongoing investigation since a news conference Wednesday. They say they expect more arrests and charges.
