Twenty-two people were shot, including one killed, yesterday at the Chiefs' Super Bowl victory rally at Union Station. The gunfire, which broke out "near the end of the citywide celebration amid thousands of fans and onlookers," sent nine children to the hospital with bullet wounds and "broke up the event in chaos." A federal law enforcement official said there were "no immediate indications the shooting was a national security-related event," but noted that the investigation was "still ongoing" (K.C. STAR, 2/15).
It is the latest sports celebration in the U.S. "to be marred by gun violence," following a shooting that wounded several people last year in Denver after the Nuggets' NBA championship, and gunfire last year at a parking lot near the Rangers' World Series championship parade (AP, 2/15).
Nuggets coach Mike Malone commented on the shooting before the team's game against the Kings last night, saying, "We all say it over and over and over again, 'Something has to be done.' I'm not a politician. I don’t know what the answers are. But I do feel for everybody, where it’s such a joyous occasion turned into a nightmare." When asked if he worried that an incident such as the one in K.C. could change how championships are celebrated going forward, Malone said, "The people that we put in power and our (elected officials), whether it’s locally or nationally, they’ve got to do a better job of finding a way to not make all these (possible)" (DENVER POST, 2/15).
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