A close-knit community has been left reeling after a much loved high school football star was shot dead after getting caught in the crossfire as shooting erupted at a harvest festival.
The shooting unfolded outside Harvest Homecoming in New Albany, Indiana, on Saturday night. Cops from the New Albany Police Department rushed to the area of State and Black Streets around 9.53pm after reports of a shooting. When police arrived they identified three injured people.
The teen and the other two victims have been described by the police as "innocent bystanders," unconnected to the argument that erupted into gunfire. The shooting began after an argument between two groups of young men. Three people were shot and one of them - 18-year-old Bryce Gerlach - was killed.
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WDRB reported that the two other victims wounded in the shooting were a 22-year-old man and 42-year-old woman.
The festival organizers canceled all events scheduled for Sunday “out of respect for those impacted by the tragedy last night and the overall wellbeing of our patrons, vendors and volunteers.”
“We are deeply saddened by the tragic incident that occurred in the vicinity of the Harvest Homecoming Festival Saturday evening,” a statement from festival organizers read. “We are grateful for the swift response from law enforcement and first responders. Our thoughts are with the victims and their families, as well as all patrons and community members impacted by this tragedy.”
In its Facebook post, NAPD indicated its officers were already in the area before the shooting happened because the Harvest Homecoming Festival was going on nearby.
Paying tribute to him, a junior at Corydon Central High School (CCHS) - Zach Terry - said: “He died in a pretty heroic way and that kind of is what you need to know about him, I think."
He added: “I think it just shows how many people truly care about him and how we all still care about each other so much that we all could come out here and just gather around and celebrate his life,” Terry said.
Across the community, there was an overwhelming outpouring of support for his family. Classmate Maxx Jones said: "Everybody knew Bryce. If you see that blue truck driving around Corydon, it’s like ‘Oh, that’s Bryce.’ Everyone knows that.”
“All of these folks were innocent bystanders,” New Albany Police Chief Todd Bailey said, “Our initial belief is all of the persons who were shot in this incident were completely unrelated to the dispute that led to it.”
The CCHS senior’s parking spot at the school was turned into a memorial for him. The tten was a kicker and defensive back for the CCHS Panthers and played what would be his final game Friday night."
CCHS have said they will have counselling available for students as they return to class Monday.
Local News
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