Three dead, nine injured in movie theater shooting

Three people were killed and nine wounded when a lone gunman opened fire in a Lafayette movie house Thursday evening.

Lafayette police confirmed shortly before 8 p.m. law enforcement officers responded to a call about an active shooter at the Grand 16 Lafayette at 3141 Johnston St.

Lafayette Police Chief Jim Craft confirmed at least three people were killed, including the gunman, who died from a self-inflicted wound.

Two victims were pronounced dead at the scene. Nine were transported to area hospitals, eight by ambulance and one by private party. One victim died at a hospital.

The suspect was described by several witnesses as a white, middle-aged male. State Police said the shooter, whose identity was not released late Thursday, was 58 years old.

Mayhem in the theater

“We heard a loud pop we thought was a firecracker,” Katie Domingue of Carencro said. She was at the 7 p.m. showing of “Trainwreck” with her fiance, Joshua Doggett, in Theater No. 14. About 20 minutes into the movie, Domingue said, she heard a loud noise.

She said she saw “an older white man” standing up and shooting down, not in her direction.

“He wasn’t saying anything. I didn’t hear anybody screaming either,” Domingue said.

She heard about six shots, she said, before she and Doggett ran to the nearest exit, leaving behind her shoes and purse.

The scene in the theater parking lot reflected the mayhem of the evening. News media had been moved offsite and were reporting from in front of a nearby coffee shop, Johnston Street Java. The parking lot itself was filled with emergency vehicles, including a Haz-Mat unit.

Authorities also closed down the Grand 14 on Kaliste Saloom in what they said was an exercise in caution. The parking lot was cleared shortly before 10 p.m. there, with four State Police units on the scene.

Randall Man, Acadian Ambulance VP of marketing, said 10 ambulances and 26 paramedics responded to last night's shooting.

Three more ambulances were standing by for relief at a nearby Albertsons.

The first ambulances responded within 7 minutes of the initial call.

“We don’t know if this was just a random act or whether it was a domestic situation,” Craft said, saying the investigation was not far enough along.

Victims identities not confirmed

Authorities would not confirm the identities of those who were shot. But unconfirmed reports said the wounded included longtime Lafayette oilman Dwight S. “Bo” Ramsay, chairman of the board of Aries Marine Corp., and his wife, Gerri. The extent of their injuries was not revealed.

Some of the wounded were critically injured, authorities said, others had lesser wounds.

At least some of those who were shot were taken to Lafayette General Medical Center, Acadiana’s largest hospital. Lafayette General spokesman Daryl Cetnar said that by agreement with police, Lafayette General could not reveal whether the victims were taken there. He said the hospital would release a statement Friday.

But what appeared to be family members and friends of the victim milled around inside the Emergency Room. A Catholic priest was on the scene.

Jindal: 'This is an awful night'

Gov. Bobby Jindal called for prayers Thursday evening during a press conference.

“The best thing anybody can do right now is to think about them, pray for them,” he said. “We will get through this. We are a resilient community. This is an awful night for Lafayette. This is an awful night for Louisiana. This is an awful night for the United States.”

In an issued statement, U.S. Rep. Charles Boustany, R-Lafayette, said, “I’m saddened at the terrible loss of life represented in tonight’s tragic shooting at a movie theater in my hometown of Lafayette. Bridget and I are praying for the families and friends of the victims at this difficult time. I will work with the Lafayette Police Department, local, state and federal officials to get to the bottom of what happened tonight.”

'Blood everywhere'

Jalen Fernell, 20, of Lafayette, was in the Grand Theatre watching “Southpaw” with friends when he heard gunshots.

“They were very faint over the movie. I thought it was part of the movie,” Fernell said. “About five seconds later, sirens went off and I realized it wasn’t the movie.”

A voice over the intercom told moviegoers to evacuate the theater, Fernell said. Patrons, unaware of what happened, took off running, he said.

Outside the theater, police were everywhere late Thursday.

“I saw a woman lying on the ground outside with blood everywhere. She was shot in the leg,” Fernell said. “We didn’t know what to do. You’re scared to walk through the parking lot, You don’t know if the guy’s in a car, hiding in the parking lot.”

Additional police arrived at the scene and entered the building, armed with assault rifles, he said.

“I heard gunshots like a war going on,” Fernell said.

When the gunfire stopped, he heard from a police car radio that six people were down in Theater No. 14, he said.

More police arrived and charged inside; additional shots were fired. Fernell said he heard someone say the suspect was down; he had committed suicide.

In the theater where the shooting took place, Emily Mann, 21, was watching “Trainwreck,” seated in the second row from the top of the theater with a friend. He father, Randall Mann, said his daughter heard popping noises and noticed flashes coming from a gun that was held by a man in the same row on the other side of the theater.

Randall Mann is vice president of marketing and public relations at Acadian Ambulance. He said his daughter was not up to speaking about the incident Thursday night.

Mann said Acadian Ambulance transported eight patients to area hospitals. The company responded with 10 ambulances and off-duty personnel who heard about the shooting and showed up at the scene to help, he said.

The Grand Theatres in Lafayette and Broussard are owned by New Orleans-based Southern Theatres LLC.

The company operates multiplex stadium-seating movie theaters in Louisiana, Alabama, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Mississippi, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Texas, and Virginia.

The Daily Advertiser reporters Seth Dickerson, Jessica Goff, Claire Taylor, Herman Fuselier and Ken Stickney contributed to this report.