Detroit police may up security for NFL Draft after Chiefs' parade shooting
DETROIT (FOX 2) - The Kansas City Chiefs' Super Bowl parade turned into a nightmare on Wednesday. Shooters opened fire on the crowd, killing one radio host and injuring 21 people.
While an investigation into the shooting continues, many eyes are on Detroit for the upcoming NFL Draft in late April. About 300,000 people are expected to attend the three-day event.
Anticipating attendees say they hope tight security measures will be in place during the draft in Detroit. The draft is the NFL's next major event after the Super Bowl.
"A lot of times when people are having a good time, just a few people can mess it up for everybody else," said Sean Walker, a football fan. "I think for Kansas City, those fans, they deserve a parade. But a few people messed it up."
As Kansas City fans celebrated the team's Super Bowl win, violence and chaos ensued.
Kansas City Chiefs parade shooting leaves 1 dead, several injured
Among the victims were at least eight children, officials said during a news conference on Wednesday.
Radio station KKFI said in a Facebook post Wednesday evening that DJ Lisa Lopez, host of "Taste of Tejano," was killed in the shooting.
Among the injured victims were at least eight children, officials said during a news conference shortly after the shooting. Three suspects were taken into custody.
"People want to feel safe. They want to bring their kids to the NFL draft," Walker said. "It’s a fun spectacle, but if you have to up the police presence to make sure the bad actors stay down, you have to do it."
Detroit police's former assistant chief, Steve Dolunt, said the department may increase security for NFL Draft after the shooting at the Chiefs' parade.
"Now they have no-alcohol zones. So I think what they’ll do is… they’ll corner it off with the barricades," Dolunt said. "As you come through, they’ll probably wand you."
While Dolunt does not know any specifics of what Detroit police have planned for security at the NFL Draft – police will be everywhere, he said, looking for anything suspicious.
"Chief (James) White says this all the time: For the football games, leave your gun at home," Dolunt added. "You don’t need to bring it, and here’s a perfect example of what happen(s)."
Safety plans are still underway, according to Detroit police.
"I hope that there’s a lot of policemen out here… kind of checking everything," said Cody Wramaski, a Lions fan.
In 2006, a woman was shot and killed in Detroit, near Super Bowl festivities, as the city hosted the big event. Dolunt says he hopes nothing like that will take place during the draft.
"If you can shoot the pope, which they did, if you can shoot the president, which they did, you can shoot anybody – but why would you do it at a celebration?" Dolunt said.