FAMU homecoming shooting leaves 12 injured, including 6 children, in Tallahassee

Gunfire erupted near Bragg Memorial Stadium after Florida A&M University’s homecoming football game, leaving families and the Tallahassee community shaken.

A Florida A&M University homecoming celebration turned violent Saturday night when gunfire erupted near Bragg Memorial Stadium in Tallahassee, Florida, leaving 12 people injured, including six children.

Eleven people suffered gunshot wounds, while another person was injured while fleeing the scene, according to reports from the Tallahassee Democrat. The youngest victim was 11 years old. Early Sunday, three victims were reported to be in serious condition, including one who was listed in critical condition. At least one of the people injured was a FAMU student.

The shooting happened after the university’s homecoming football game on Oct. 24. Although the crowd near the stadium had begun to thin, hundreds of people remained around the perimeter, including people attending tailgates and visiting vendors.

As shots rang out, people scattered in different directions. A Tallahassee Democrat reporter who was in a parking lot near Wahnish Way after the game described seeing people run and hearing screams, though she did not hear the gunfire herself.

The panic continued as people tried to get away from the shooting. In a social media post, one parent said their 14-year-old daughter was injured while fleeing and was trampled in the rush. The girl saw people on the ground and stayed still until someone helped her. She later learned that both of her ankles were sprained.

“This could have been any of our babies,” the parent wrote.

Another parent described children crying as adults tried to get them to safety, saying they were attempting to pull other people’s children out of danger.

The shooting cast a shadow over a weekend that had brought FAMU alumni, students and supporters together to celebrate the historically Black university. For many in Tallahassee, the violence was especially painful because homecoming is a time for reconnecting with friends, family and the broader Rattler community.

Royle King, recently the executive director of the Tallahassee-Leon County Council on the Status of Men and Boys at the Leon County Sheriff’s Office, shared his grief after spending the day celebrating the university.

“My heart is heavy tonight,” King wrote. “To spend the day celebrating the university I love, surrounded by so many people I love, only to end the night hearing news like this is heartbreaking.”

King added that the shooting had affected the community personally. “This is home. These are our people,” he wrote, lamenting that what should have been a joyful weekend had become painful for so many.

Carlton Worthen, a FAMU graduate and pastor of Union AME Church, said he could imagine the panic as people rushed to escape the gunfire. He worried that the movement of a large crowd could have caused additional injuries and said he was praying the number of victims would remain low.

Chuck Hobbs, a FAMU graduate, commentator and columnist, said the shooting left him unable to sleep. He expressed concern not only for the victims’ physical injuries but also for the trauma experienced by people who heard the gunshots or saw others being shot.

Tallahassee Mayor John Dailey, who attended the homecoming parade earlier Saturday, also expressed support for the university community.

“This is a truly horrific and heartbreaking tragedy,” Dailey said. “Tonight and in the days ahead, the FAMU family is not alone. Our entire community stands with you.”

Florida gubernatorial candidates also responded to the shooting. Democrat David Jolly offered condolences and said he and his wife, Laura, were praying for the victims, their loved ones and the FAMU community. Republican candidate Byron Donalds, a FAMU alumnus, said he was devastated and praying for the 12 people injured, including six children.

State Rep. Angie Nixon, who is running for the Florida Senate, said the violence had shattered homecoming’s sense of community. She called the number of children among the injured horrifying and urged action and support for those affected.

Authorities were investigating the shooting Sunday. The reports available at the time did not announce any arrests or establish a direct connection between the shooting and the university’s football game.

The investigation comes as families and members of the FAMU community try to make sense of a night that was supposed to be about school pride and celebration but ended with children and adults injured and a community grieving.