Cody Kimball
Director of Technology
Eyewitnesses report a shootout occurring at the Copper Beech Townhomes off of West KL Ave. in Kalamazoo on Saturday. Twenty-one year-old Western Michigan University student Nathan Sheets
witnessed the events.
Sheets is a resident at Copper Beech. He said that the shots were fired between 1:30 a.m. and 2:00 a.m. on Saturday.
Sheets said that a person fired into the air nearby where he and a friend were standing on a porch.
According to Sheets, others began shooting back.
“I could see the fire from the guns” he said.
Witnesses report between five and 15 shots being fired in total.
Police arrived on the scene approximately three minutes later, according to Sheets.
“The police were already rolling around nearby,” Sheets said. “People pretty much scattered when they showed up. I didn’t see anyone get arrested.”
The details of the events have not yet been confirmed by Kalamazoo County Sheriffs Office. Copper Beech has declined to comment.
Witnesses tweeted about the shootout.
Another shooting just happened in copper beech #cool #thisplaceisghettoaf
— Lyndsie (@lyndsiesue) December 8, 2012
Just got woken up by like five gunshots. I fucking hate copper beech
— Brandon McNees (@bscottmcnasty) December 8, 2012
Just heard 5 gunshots at Copper Beech! Fuck this place!! Glad to b moving out next year!!!
— Patrick Lambracht (@PTRK_LAMBRACHT) December 8, 2012
Hell yeah RT @__noremorse: they shooting in copper beech?
— Lil Reese(@__Dooley3) December 8, 2012
Shots fired at copper beech
— Michael Speez (@SpeezyFbaby) December 8, 2012
Shots fired in front of my house. I fucking hate copper beech
— Jakob Thompson (@Jakob_Thompson) December 8, 2012
Gun pulled out on my boy at Campus Court? Gun fight in Copper Beech? What the fuxk… #wmu
— DJ Surge (@I_Am_DJSurge) December 8, 2012
guess shooting in the air at Copper Beech is cool again
— Mr Coney (@Tony_Cnotes) December 8, 2012
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I find it interesting that peoples first reactions are to tweet about hearing gun shots and to complain about how it is too noisy. It is even more shocking that people can see this as a habitual and normalized event in their lives. I would hope that, if ever in this position, that my initial reaction would be to wonder if anyone was immediately injured by the shots fired, quickly followed by a call to the police. I hope that there are more people who would make that decision as well, to be proactive and not passive. This should not be an acceptable societal norm that people in the Kalamazoo County go through. Until we make the decision that this behavior is not accepted here, it will continue to develop and hurt those around us.
Maybe the Western Herald can reach out and do a Public Service Announcement on how to be proactive again gun violence in their community.