A Delaware State University (DSA) student was fatally shot on Sunday night at a gathering of 300 to 500 people in Dover.
Devin Wright, 20, died at a local hospital after being shot in the head, police said, adding that another man was shot in his shoulder and hand. He is stable.
Police said the victims were attending a party at Schutte Park when a shootout, involving “multiple suspects,” erupted shortly after 9:30 pm local time.
Police said most of the attendees at the gathering were DSA students, but the event was not sanctioned by the school.
The park was closed to the public when the incident took place, police said, adding that no permission was given for the gathering.
Gathering Flouted Coronavirus Emergency Rules
The gathering also flouted the state’s coronavirus emergency declaration that prohibits the congregation of more than 250 people unless the host receives written authorization from public health officials.
The investigation is underway in the incident and no arrest has been made so far.
DSA spokesperson Carlos Holmes told Delaware Online the “university community is profoundly saddened and troubled by [the] tragic death of Devin Wright and the event surrounding his death.”
In a similar incident on September 6, a 26-year-old man suffered gunshot wounds at a party in another park in Dover that also involved university students.
The small Mid-Atlantic state of Delaware has seen an uptick in crime this year, according to data compiled by Delaware Online, with 233 people being victims of gun violence, 75.2 percent more than at this point last year.