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4 shot, 1 critical in Nashville bus station shooting

NASHVILLE — A shooting at the Music City Central bus station in downtown Nashville has left four people injured, including one critically wounded, Metropolitan Nashville Police said.

NASHVILLE — A shooting at the Music City Central bus station in downtown Nashville has left four people injured, including one critically wounded, Metropolitan Nashville Police said.

The shooting was reported to police at about 3:40 p.m. CT and is the latest string violence involving young people in Nashville. Earlier in the day, four people were injured in an unrelated shooting in Goodlettsville.

Metro police spokesman Don Aaron said four teenagers were shot at the bus station, including 18-year-old Javious Chatman, who was critically injured. That man was taken to Vanderbilt University Medical Center for treatment, Aaron said. A 17-year-old boy was hit in the ankle, and 17-year-old and 15-year-old boys suffered graze wounds, Aaron said.

Chatman was on the escalator when the shooting happened, according to Metro police.

Police say a window-washer spotted two teens running away from the bus station and one of them toss a semi-automatic pistol into a bush.

Two 17-year-olds are in police custody, according to police .

The shooting is not believed to be a random event, according to police, as surveillance video shows the suspects riding up and down the escalators as if they were looking for someone.

 

A Tennessean reporter in the area at the time of the shooting heard at least one gunshot and watched as people ran, ducking behind stairwells and any other infrastructure for cover. Teenagers frequently use the bus station as they head home from school.

Music City Central bus station serves up to 20,000 passengers each weekday. The station is next to Municipal Auditorium and is bordered by 4th and 5th Avenues North on Charlotte Avenue in downtown Nashville's Central Business District.

 

 

State Rep. Mike Stewart, D-Nashville, said he was walking with a group of people on nearby Deaderick Street when he heard the sound of gunshots. He said he looked toward Music City Central and saw more than 150 middle and high school-age students streaming out of the building to avert danger.

So many students had packed the bus transfer station because their school days had ended earlier in the afternoon. Many Metro students use MTA bus passes to get to and from schools that are outside their zoned schools.

“It was the biggest possible nightmare,” Stewart said. “Just a whole bus station full of children. It was crazy.

“It was the worst conceivable moment to have gunfire because it was right at the moment when all the buses transfer.”

Stewart approached the scene and saw two of the victims shortly after police had arrived. He said both of the victims he saw were conscious and talking to police officers.

He applauded law enforcement officials for what he described as a remarkably quick response to the situation. He said he saw police arresting one individual within five minutes after the shots.

“The police were just right on it,” Stewart said. “I’m telling you. It could not have been even a minute elapsed between when we heard the shots and when I walked upon the scene, and those police officers had already gotten the area cleared and taken care of the injured people. I don’t know who they were, but they definitely deserve a lot of credit.”

Andre Gibson, who works in the nearby Andrew Jackson building, said he is always vigilant whenever he walks by the bus station.

"Bullets don't have eyes, they don't know direction. Bystanders could have been hurt," Gibson said.

Follow Holly Meyer and Holly Fletcher on Twitter: @HollyAMeyer and @hollyfletcher

 

 

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