A 17-year-old boy from Kalamazoo was shot in the leg while attending a party believed to have taken place in Portage early Saturday, and his friends drove him to the hospital rather than wait for an ambulance. The teenager told investigators he heard a loud pop before he realized he had been struck, and his injuries were not believed to be life-threatening.
According to WOODTV, the teen's friends drove him to the hospital after the shooting, and officers with the Portage Department of Public Safety responded to Bronson Methodist Hospital after he arrived. The exact location of the party has not been pinned down. MLive reports the party was at an unknown location believed to be in Portage, and that the shooting happened at about 4:47 a.m. Saturday, Oct. 24, while WOODTV reported that officers arrived at the hospital around 4:45 a.m. that same morning.
Friends Stepped In Before Police Arrived
Rather than calling 911 from the scene, the teen's friends made the decision to drive him straight to the hospital. WWMT reports that the teen's friends drove him to the hospital for treatment, a detail consistent with how the case first came to the attention of Portage officers. Per MLive, friends transported the teen to the hospital for treatment of injuries not believed to be life-threatening.
As first reported by FOX 17, police said Monday that the teen was recovering after being shot at the party over the weekend. The station's report also noted that officers were told the teen reported hearing a pop before realizing he had been struck in the leg, language that matches the account relayed by investigators in the days following the shooting.
Investigation Remains Open
MLive notes that the incident remains under investigation, and no additional details about a suspect, a weapon, or how the shooting unfolded have been released. The Portage Department of Public Safety is asking anyone with information to come forward. Those with details can call the department at 269-329-4567 or reach Silent Observer anonymously at 269-343-2100, according to WOODTV.
A Second Portage Party Shooting This Year
This is not the only shooting tied to a party in Portage this year. On Aug. 1, 19-year-old Triston Coulter of Kalamazoo was killed in a separate shooting near a party in Portage, according to WOODTV. In that incident, Coulter and another man who suffered non-life-threatening injuries were shot in a parking lot next to a large party, and a preliminary investigation at the time indicated a large gathering was taking place nearby, per WWMT. That case also remained under investigation with no arrests announced, according to WOODTV's report on Coulter's family. The August shooting is a separate case from Saturday's incident, and investigators have not indicated any connection between the two.
