March 3rd 2017 was a sad day for Colton, California. Our beloved park was the victim of yet another shooting in the state of California. As a witness to this crime, I was saddened by the thought that a park I grew up walking at and watching my family play sports at, etc. now was the place of a local shooting. Authorities arrived at the scene but found no one to be shot, injured, or dead. As a witness there, I saw a large crowd of people running to cars and trying to escape the scene after the 5 shots rung out.

     Authorities believe this to be some sort of gang affiliated activity. Many witnesses stated that large groups of people wearing blue bandanas on their heads were spotted at the scene of the crime. Raul Valadez who walked past the scene before it happened stated “ when me and my friend walked by when we just saw a bunch of people wearing blue bandanas.”  Bandanas also known as colors are not always a sign of gang affiliation but are commonly used so members can identify one another.  Witnesses say the perpetrator was on a Harley Davidson motorcycle and did a “drive by” shooting before attempting to escape on Rancho Ave. However authorities were able to catch the suspect before he was able to make it to the freeway.

      There were no reported injuries and no one was reported dead. As time has passed from this tragic day life at Paul J Rogers park has things have continued without a skipping a beat. Many people believe that this event was maybe a one time thing as there hasn’t been any other incidents such as that one at the park. The park has been a major part of Colton’s family. Shootings have seemingly become more frequent in the US. Sadly they are now attacking our childhood memories.