'We're Angry': Downtown Sacramento Safety Perceptions Impacted After Another Deadly Shooting
SACRAMENTO (CBS13) — A shooting outside of a downtown nightclub in the early morning hours of the Fourth of July, that killed a Natomas assistant football coach and injured four others, is under investigation by Sacramento police.
As nightclubs let out on July 4, shots rang out near Mix Downtown nightclub on 16th and L streets. Witness video obtained by CBS13 showed multiple law enforcement vehicles and sirens responding. The witness, who lives in an apartment building near 16th Street, said she believed the gunshots were fireworks and there was confusion.
Now, another Sacramento family said they are living "minute by minute" after the death of 31-year-old Greg Najee Grimes, a former standout athlete at Boise State who returned to be an assistant football coach at his alma mater Inderkum High School.
Four others were injured and treated at area hospitals.
"We're angry that we keep going through these discussions. This is not mental health. This is not youth activity. This is bad behavior that needs to be managed," said David Ault, the executive director of the Sacramento Downtown Partnership.
Ault said Proposition 47 limits law enforcement's ability to hold those responsible accountable. Prop 47, The Safe Neighborhoods and Schools Act, implemented three changes to felony sentencing laws. It reclassified some theft and drug possession offenses from felonies to misdemeanors; authorized defendants currently serving sentences for felony offenses that would have qualified as misdemeanors under the proposition to petition for resentencing; authorized defendants who completed sentences for felony convictions, that would have qualified as misdemeanors to apply for reclassification.
"We need better ordinances. We have stripped away a lot of the tools that give law enforcement an opportunity to manage this behavior," Ault said.
Sacramento police shared an update on social media Tuesday. Eleven shell casings were found near the scene of the shooting, surveillance video was being reviewed, and witnesses were contacted. No suspects were identified as of Tuesday.
CBS13 asked the spokesperson for Sacramento police for specifics on a motive, a suspect and the potential that this shooting could be gang-involved, due to the nature of the city's worst shooting that happened just a few blocks away nearly three months to the day on April 3. The mass shooting on 10th and K Streets left six people dead, including three innocent women, and a dozen injured.
CBS13 reviewed surveillance video from a business near Mix Downtown nightclub. Petra, a Greek restaurant nearby, was closed when the shooting occurred, and in security video during the timeline of events, there are no visible signs of chaos or concern captured around the corner.
"These incidents occurred when bars and clubs let out, we need to hold bars accountable for managing their patrons. We need to work with law enforcement so that people who are intent on doing harm within the core are held accountable," said Ault.
Sacramento Mayor Darrell Steinberg tweeted a statement on Monday that called on elected officials at all levels of government to treat gun violence as an emergency.
A vigil will be held for Grimes Inderkum High School at 7 p.m on Tuesday.
