By Steve Almasy, Dakin Andone and Stella Chan, CNN
(CNN) — Police have arrested a second suspect in connection to a mass shooting in downtown Sacramento, California, this weekend that left six people dead and a chaotic crime scene littered with more than 100 shell casings.
Smiley Martin, 27, who was taken into police custody Tuesday, was found at the scene of the shooting early Sunday with “serious injuries from gunfire” and taken to a local hospital, the Sacramento Police Department said in a news release.
He was “quickly identified as a person of interest and has remained under the supervision of an officer at the hospital while his treatment continues,” the release said.
Once his medical care is complete, he will be booked at the Sacramento County Main Jail on charges of possession of a firearm by a prohibited person and possession of a machine gun, police said.
Authorities had already arrested Smiley Martin’s brother, 26-year-old Dandrae Martin, in connection to the shooting, which also left 12 people wounded and was one of more than 120 mass shootings in the United States this year and one of at least 10 shooting incidents over the weekend.
Dandrae Martin, who was identified as a “related suspect,” is scheduled to appear in court Tuesday after being booked on assault and illegal firearm possession charges, according to police.
Sacramento County District Attorney Anne Marie Schubert noted in a statement posted online that Dandrae Martin has not been charged with a homicide. She said she thinks authorities will eventually take more people into custody.
“The investigation is highly complex involving many witnesses, videos of numerous types and significant physical evidence,” Schubert said. “This is an ongoing investigation and we anticipate more arrests in this case.”
Dandrae Martin was being held without bail, online jail records show. CNN has not been able to reach an attorney for him.
During an emotional vigil Monday night, members of the Sacramento community and officials expressed frustration with repeated instances of gun violence in the city and called for action to prevent more shootings.
“The last time we had a mass shooting we did the same thing,” said one speaker who did not share his name but identified himself as a cousin of one of the victims. “Sat out here, held up our candles, talk about the police are here for us now, the public officials are here for us now.”
“How are they here for us when we are sitting doing the same damn thing again? The same thing,” he said. “So who’s going to stop it?”
Here’s what we know about the shooting so far.
How the shooting unfolded
The shooting happened just after 2 a.m. in a bustling part of downtown, just a few blocks from the California State Capitol, Sacramento City Hall and the Golden 1 Center, where the city’s NBA team plays home games.
A video posted on social media appears to show an altercation before the shooting, police said in a statement. “We are currently working to determine what, if any, relation these events have to the shooting,” the statement said.
During the initial investigation, detectives found more than 100 shell casings and discovered at least three buildings and three cars that had been hit by bullets.
“There were a lot of shots fired that night, and hence the complexity of the investigation,” police Chief Katherine Lester told CNN affiliate KCRA.
Lester has said there were multiple shooters and that a large fight preceded the gunfire. A stolen handgun was among the hundreds of pieces of evidence found at the scene, she said Sunday.
Police served search warrants at three homes and at least one handgun was recovered, Sacramento police said in a news release. Authorities said they have received more than 100 video or photo files on a tip portal.
Victims as young as 21
The Sacramento County Coroner’s Office on Monday identified the six victims who died:
— Johntaya Alexander, 21
— Melinda Davis, 57
— Sergio Harris, 38
— Joshua Hoye-Lucchesi, 32
— Yamile Martinez-Andrade, 21
— Devazia Turner, 29
The tragedy has devastated the victims’ families, confounded the community and angered those who are frustrated by yet another mass shooting.
“My son was a very vivacious young man,” Harris’ mother Pamela Harris told CNN affiliate KOVR. She said her son smiled all the time and never bothered anyone.
“And for this to happen, it’s crazy,” she said. “And I’m just to the point right now (where) I don’t know what to do. I don’t even think this is real.”
Sacramento’s second mass shooting in recent weeks
The incident was the second mass shooting in Sacramento in the past five weeks. On February 28, a man fatally shot three of his children and another man at a church. The gunman took his own life, authorities said.
Mayor Darrell Steinberg said solutions — not well wishes — are needed to help change the trajectory of gun violence in America.
“Thoughts and prayers are not enough,” he said. “It is beyond time to have a sane conversation (about) guns in America. We have a sickness — it’s a sickness in our country, it’s a sickness in our culture.”
Sacramento will keep investing in programs focused on early intervention and violence prevention for young people, he said.
“In our city, we will take stock and we will do everything we can — on the investment side, on the public safety side, on the gun side — to protect the public,” Steinberg said.
Gov. Gavin Newsom issued a statement saying the “scourge of gun violence continues to be a crisis in our country, and we must resolve to bring an end to this carnage.”
And President Joe Biden described Sacramento as “another community devastated by gun violence,” calling on Congress to act on gun control measures.
“In a single act in Sacramento, six individuals left dead and at least a dozen more injured,” Biden said in a statement. “Families forever changed. Survivors left to heal wounds both visible and invisible.”
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