Kenosha faced three mass shootings in 2022, leaving 4 dead and many wounded, in the same year
1The City of Kenosha faced three mass shootings in 2022, which left four people dead and multiple victims injured.
The shootings were ranked by the Kenosha News staff as No. 1 in a list of the top local stories of 2022.
According to The Gun Violence Archive, an independent non-profit organization with a database that tracks shootings in the US, a mass shooting incident is one with a “minimum of four victims shot, either injured or killed, not including any shooter who may also have been killed or injured in the incident.”
New Year’s Day
The city’s first mass shooting occurred on New Year’s Day.
One man was killed and three other injured in the parking lot of now-shuttered Coins Sports Bar, 1714 52nd St., a little before 4 am on New Year’s Day
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Breon T. Gates, 27, of Illinois was killed and three others injured as multiple shots were fired in the parking lot of the bar.
Police arrived that morning to find vehicles fleeing the scene and people running from the parking lot. An official complaint from law enforcement stated that 33 officers from the Kenosha Police Department and five other outside agencies responded to gain control of the situation.
The Kenosha City Council voted overwhelmingly in March to revoke the liquor licenses of Coins Sports Bar.
Fourth ofJuly
The city also was the scene of a mass shooting on Independence Day.
Four people were injured and one person was killed in a shooting around 10:20 pm July 4 in the 6300 block of 25th Avenue. Anderail K. Armstrong, 20, known as “Lil Cash,” died in the shooting.
Police reportedly encountered a chaotic scene when they arrived with obvious evidence of multiple gunshots.
The four injured adults were transported to local hospitals with two being transferred to Milwaukee-area hospitals due to serious injuries.
The area remained cordoned off in the days following the shooting with squad cars parked in front of the two-story house where the shooting occurred. A vehicle parked across the street belonging to a neighbor sustained substantial damage from gunshots. On nearby sidewalks there were chalk markers where some of the casings were located.
Area resident Kelly Ingram was angry and upset. The father of two teenagers said he was outside watching neighborhood fireworks before he walked inside his home for the night. About 20 minutes later he said he heard about 30 gunshots fired right outside his front porch.
“I heard a gunfight right in my front yard,” Ingram said at the time. “It’s disappointing. You know, I got two kids who are on their way to college. What if my daughter or my son rolled up?”
Ingram said young people began arguing outside the residence where the shooting occurred as they were partying and then at least two people opened fire.
Ingram called the gun violence “senseless.”“People can’t fight anymore. They have to be sissies and use guns. Why couldn’t you just go out into the street and use your fists if you have a problem with someone?” he added. “This is ridiculous.”
Early on Sept 18
Shortly before 2 am the morning of Sept. 18, Kenosha Police responded to now-closed Las Margaritas bar for a call of four shooting victims. Two of the victims, 33-year-old Kenosha resident Houston R. Oliver and 35-year-old Racine resident James J. Alexander–Hood died from their injuries. Two others were injured but survived after being transported to local hospitals for care.
Efforts to arrest the suspects took months, with extensive collaboration between local, state and federal law enforcement agencies. Kendal T. Readus, 29, was taken into custody in November just outside Atlanta, Ga., by the Southeast Regional US Marshal Service Fugitive Task Force.
Readus was allegedly the shooter while James Murphy, 29, was possibly the getaway driver. Murphy was approved in October in Hogansville, Ga., by that community’s law enforcement after a citizen tip, just over a month after the Kenosha shootings.
“Public safety is a top priority for the Kenosha Police Department,” Lt. Joseph Nosalik said. “We’ll never stop looking for the people alleged to have committed these crimes. We’ll use all available resources to make sure they’re held accountable.”
The operators of Las Margaritas decided to close within days of the mass shooting and turned its liquor license over to the city.
Mayors respond
To help combat gun violence the mayors of Kenosha, Racine, Milwaukee and Madison — all of whom are Democrats — co-signed a letter this month calling on the US Senate to ban assault weapons and expand mandated background checks for those seeking to purchase firearms.
The letter was signed by 73 US mayors, most-but-not-all of whom were Democrats, who said their communities experienced a mass shooting sometime in 2022. The letter was distributed by the nonpartisan US Conference of Mayors.
The letter was dated Monday, Dec. 5, and addressed to Senate leaders Chuck Schumer, DN.Y., and Mitch McConnell, R-Ky.
Earlier this month, Antaramian said he said he believes most Americans — and Kenosha residents — agree with him.
“I don’t think the majority of the public has a problem in saying that — with all the mass shootings that have occurred — someone having a huge clip doesn’t make any sense at all,” Antaramian said. “I believe that people in this community who, if they look at what the legislation is dealing with and the types of mass shootings that have occurred around the country, I believe that most people would say it just makes perfect sense. When you think of the shootings that have happened at schools and other places, I think the majority of the people would agree that you don’t need those type of high-capacity devices.”
COMING UP: The Kenosha News 2022 Person of the Year will be featured in the News next week.
TERRY FLORES, KENOSHA NEWS
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