SHREVEPORT, La. (KTAL/KMSS) — This week, Shreveport reached a troubling milestone with its sixth shooting with multiple victims of the year, setting a new city record for the highest number of such shootings in a single year.
The latest violence unfolded during a large party on the 4th of July where multiple partygoers were shot. Police said more than 200 people were attending the party when two groups of men opened fire.
Jadajah Thomas, who was at the party at the time of the shooting, described the chaos.
“We was sitting in the car for like 15 minutes when we heard shots everywhere,” said Thomas. “We also was driving past, trying to get out. We was right here. We seen people laying out dead on the ground.”
During a press conference Wednesday, District 2 Commissioner Lyndon Johnson expressed shock. “Right now, I’m just in awe of what has happened today. This street is family tight. Everyone is real close. This community is hurting right now.”
Shreveport Mayor Tom Arceneaux said the injury to the neighborhood is severe.
“Every death, every injury from gun violence affects all of us and diminishes us as a community,” Arceneaux said.
Other officials expressed outrage.
“I am looking for justice for these families, said Shreveport Councilwoman Tabatha Taylor. “And I want this justice to reflect full prosecution, no sympathy, no empathy because you didn’t give no empathy to the people you hurt. None.”
While there is no universally agreed-upon definition, mass shootings are widely recognized to be when three or more people are shot in a single incident.
According to the Mass Shooting Tracker, since 2013, Shreveport has not seen more than four mass shootings in a year. This isn’t the first time Shreveport has seen a large shooting on a holiday. An online dispute led to a brawl on Halloween 2016 that violently escalated, wounding four people.
March is typically the deadliest month in Shreveport, with five mass shootings since 2013.
Below is a list of every mass shooting in Shreveport in the past 10 years:
2023 (to date)
| Date | Dead | Wounded |
| January 22 | 0 | 8 |
| March 4 | 0 | 4 |
| March 24 | 0 | 4 |
| March 25 | 1 | 5 |
| May 14 | 0 | 4 |
| July 4 | 3 | 7 |
2022
| Date | Dead | Wounded |
| April 2 | 1 | 3 |
2021
| Date | Dead | Wounded |
| January 3 | 2 | 3 |
| February 28 | 0 | 5 |
| April 18 | 0 | 6 |
| September 4 | 1 | 4 |
2020
| Date | Dead | Wounded |
| January 31 | 0 | 4 |
| July 15 | 1 | 3 |
| November 15 | 0 | 5 |
2019
| Date | Dead | Wounded |
| March 10 | 0 | 4 |
| April 7 | 0 | 4 |
| June 15 | 0 | 4 |
2018
| Date | Dead | Wounded |
| April 15 | 0 | 6 |
| May 27 | 0 | 4 |
2017
| Date | Dead | Wounded |
| January 29 | 1 | 3 |
2016
| Date | Dead | Wounded |
| May 5 | 2 | 8 |
| July 7 | 1 | 3 |
| October 31 | 0 | 4 |
2015
| Date | Dead | Wounded |
| July 5 | 0 | 8 |
| September 12 | 0 | 4 |
| September 23 | 0 | 5 |
There were no mass shootings in 2014, according to the Mass Shooting Tracker.
2013
| Date | Dead | Wounded |
| March 2 | 1 | 3 |