The incident occurred on Friday night at Ladd-Peebles Stadium in Mobile, Alabama, soon after the game between Leflore and Williamson high schools.
According to the Hill:
Police said the victims, all between ages 15 and 18, were taken to local hospitals, according to the outlet. About half of them are in critical condition with non-life threatening injuries, WKRG reported.
Authorities said later Saturday morning that they have arrested Deangelo Parnell, 17, in connection with the shooting. Parnell is charged with nine counts of attempted murder, police told WKRG.
Police are questioning witnesses as they continue to investigate the shooting.
Several witnesses reported that a fight occurred in the stands prior to the end of the game. Though, none could confirm that the fight had anything to do with the shooting.
Mobile Police Chief Lawrence Battiste described his officers conduct during the shooting.
“We treat this like an active shooter scenario,” Battiste said via NBC News. “Our guys, when they heard shots rang out, they moved to the area.”
Battiste expressed anger at young people settling their disputes with gunfire at public events.
“Why are the young people bringing this type of violence to public events. They’re bringing their beefs that they have with each other in their neighborhoods and they’re putting other people in harm’s way,” Battiste lamented. “This is unacceptable for people to not to be able to come out and enjoy an event.”
Battiste made assurances that all perpetrators would be fully prosecuted.
Follow Dylan Gwinn on Twitter @themightygwinn