Three young people, all under 20, are facing charges after a Southside disturbance in Elmira erupted into gunfire and a foot chase that ended with a suspect cornered inside a downtown parking garage. Police identified 19-year-old Tyrel C. Campbell of Elmira as the man who allegedly fired at another man and then at pursuing officers before being caught, while two teenage girls were charged in connection with the same incident.
The trouble began around 8:30 a.m. on Oct. 5, when officers were dispatched to the area of West Henry Street for a report of a physical disturbance between two people, according to stargazette.com. Police say a man fled on foot toward the railroad tracks and fired shots at another man while running north along the tracks, then turned and fired toward officers and a witness who were pursuing him.
The suspect's escape route then took a dramatic turn. According to mytwintiers.com, Campbell fled over the Chemung River rail bridge and jumped down into the Centertown Parking Garage before officers caught up with him. Officers established a perimeter around the garage, and cameras inside the structure helped lead to his capture after he was found trying to flee out the west side of the building.
No Injuries Reported Despite Multiple Shots Fired
Despite the gunfire exchanged between Campbell and the man he allegedly targeted, as well as shots fired toward pursuing officers and a witness, there were no reported injuries from the shootings. Police said at the time that they were not looking for any additional suspects beyond those already identified.
The charges against Campbell carry a notable discrepancy between sources. The Elmira Star-Gazette's reporting on the case describes Campbell as having been charged with one count of first-degree attempted murder and two counts of second-degree criminal possession of a weapon. However, the same mytwintiers.com report cited above states Campbell was arrested and charged with attempted murder in the second degree, described as a class B violent felony, along with two counts of second-degree criminal possession of a weapon, both described as class C violent felonies. The exact degree of the attempted-murder charge has not been independently confirmed between the two accounts.
Two Teen Girls Charged With Obstruction
Selena C. Lisk, 18, and a 15-year-old girl were each charged with second-degree obstructing governmental administration, a class A misdemeanor, per the same mytwintiers.com account. No details have been released as to Lisk's or the 15-year-old's involvement or role in the events of that Monday, and police have not described how either of them allegedly factored into the confrontation or the chase that followed.
Campbell is incarcerated at the Chemung County Jail following his arrest, and the Elmira Police Department has indicated that more charges are likely once the case is presented to a grand jury. The case remains under investigation, with officers continuing their work alongside several local law enforcement agencies.
Southside Residents Already Flagged Crime Concerns
The shooting unfolded in a part of the city that residents have already singled out as a trouble spot. In a 2025 Elmira Police Department residential survey covering 578 responses, 54.37% of participants said the Southside experiences the most crime in the city, more than the 45.05% who pointed to the East Side, according to mytwintiers.com's earlier reporting on the survey. Even so, nearly 39% of respondents in that same survey reported seeing no change in shootings and weapon-related offenses over the prior year, while slightly more respondents felt violent crime was trending down than those who disagreed.
This is not the first time the Centertown Parking Garage has been the scene of gunfire. A Jan. 11 shooting at the same garage reportedly left an Elmira man in critical condition, according to a Star-Gazette report on the aftermath, though the circumstances of that earlier incident are separate from this week's case.
