Two shot at Asian Doll concert at Livingstone College, many students injured as they flee gunfire
SALISBURY, NORTH CAROLINA: Two people were shot at an Asian Doll concert at a North Carolina college homecoming performance on Saturday night, October 15; some others were injured as they escaped gunfire.
Around 11 pm, officers were sent to Salisbury's Livingstone College campus where they discovered two persons shot and additional injured people running from the shooting, while the rapper was performing onstage.
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As shown on a concert video, a fight broke out while Asian Doll was on stage. A police and school administrations' joint statement claims that one person, who is not a Livingstone student, then fired one or more shots. After the bullets were fired, students scurried to escape as panic broke out. Michaila Heywood, a student, described the scene to Counts. “Crying, yelling, just people, like upset frantically trying to find loved ones, friends it was just bad,” she said.
Ja’Laya Watkins, another student at Livingstone, was trampled while trying to escape the madness. “Somebody stepped on my head, I think like somebody stepped on my neck, not actually my head but my neck and my back,” Watkins told Channel 9.
Watkins says she now does not feel safe. “I don’t feel safe there anymore, actually I don’t,” Watkins said. “They started dancing, partying again and then (Asian Doll) started doing her thing on the stage and then you heard gunshots, everybody took off.”
According to a text message from city spokeswoman Linda McElroy on Sunday afternoon, a female victim with a graze wound was treated at a nearby hospital and released; and a male victim with a gunshot wound was flown to Novant Health Presbyterian Medical Center in Charlotte, where he was in stable condition. She was unable to confirm the age of the victims.
According to Dr Anthony Davis, president of Livingstone College, the institution is assessing its public safety procedures while collaborating with local law enforcement. “I am saddened because our students, alumni, family and friends were exposed to this senseless act of violence,” Davis said.
McElroy said that no one had been detained. Salisbury, which is about 35 miles northeast of Charlotte, is home to Livingstone, a private historically Black school. According to a statement from Davis, the school's top goal is to protect students' mental health and assess public safety measures to establish a safe atmosphere. According to him, the college is helping the authorities with their investigation.
Asian Doll, also known as Asian Da Brat, stayed silent about the incident but the next evening shared videos from the concert on Instagram.