Community Center put on lockdown Monday morning, related to Santa Cruz shooting

Santa Cruz Police say the Louden Nelson Community Center was on lock down for a brief period Monday morning because of an incident which may have been linked to a shooting late Sunday night.

The shooting happened around 8:00 p.m. near Pacific Avenue and Birch Lane.

Officers found two victims of gunshot wounds in a parked car on Birch Lane.

The 16-year-old girl from Scotts Valley was grazed in the back by a bullet and the 17-year-old girl from Ben Lomond was shot twice in the arm. Both teens were treated and released from the hospital with non-life threatening injuries.

Detectives say a car with two suspects was traveling on Birch Lane near Pacific Avenue when they confronted the three men standing on Birch Lane. The three men were standing on Birch Lane talking with their female friends inside a parked car.

A confrontation of words between the two separate sets of men occurred, which included gang slurs.

One of the two suspects in the car got out of the vehicle and began shooting at the three intended male victims. Those three ran from the area and were not hit by gunfire.

The 2 female teens in the parked car were struck by the gun fire.

Early Monday morning, Santa Cruz Police say the three intended victims went to the Louden Nelson Community Center where a class was about to begin that is run by the county Office of Education; detectives believe those three intended victims were looking for the possible shooting suspects.

“This is the first time in my experience that danger has come this close to the school,” John Rice with Louden Nelson High School said.

Santa Cruz Police Detectives are continuing to examine evidence and interview witnesses. So far, the suspect and suspect car descriptions are listed below:

#1 (Shooter): a male wearing a tan or grey hooded sweatshirt with the hood over his head and a mask or bandana covering his face.
#2 (Driver): Hispanic male, approximately 25-30 years old, wearing a black jacket and has shiny, slicked back hair.

Suspect Vehicle:
Possibly a newer model vehicle similar to a Nissan Altima, either black or dark blue, 4-door, with tinted windows.

Anonymous tips can also be sent to the police department through our Tip Line (831) 420-5995, or from our Website: http://www.santacruzpolice.com

Tipsters can also submit an anonymous tip via our smartphone app or from an SMS text.