Five people shot overnight in East Lansing as city calls for help with multiple shootings, DUI and medical cases

Five people were shot and injured in two incidents that happened over a chaotic and busy Halloween night for emergency responders, as East Lansing called in neighboring law enforcement and fire departments to help.

East Lansing Police Chief Jennifer Brown said Sunday that officers are investigating two shootings that happened over the Halloween night, along with two pedestrian crashes and 75 calls overnight for the city’s firefighters, who are also medics.

At a news conference called Sunday, Brown said described four of the shooting victims as being in stable condition and officials not knowing the condition of the fifth person.

The news conference lasted less than five minutes and after reading a statement at the city’s police station, Brown said she would not take questions from reporters.

The first shooting happened near the intersection of MAC Avenue and Linden sometime after midnight, Brown said. The chief did not give a specific time but The State News reported that the shots happened around 12:26 a.m.

Brown said three people were treated for gunshot wounds, with the condition of one person being unknown.

The second shooting happened at the intersection of Stoddard and Frye avenues in the early morning hours, Brown said.

Two people injured in that shooting are in stable condition in a hospital, she said.

There’s no ongoing threat to the community at this time, Brown said.

“We are aware that this situation was extremely frightening for our bystanders including Michigan State students as well as their families, our relationship with the university is strong and we will continue to work together. On one of our busiest nights, East Lansing officers provided life saving aid to gunshot victims, secured multiple crime scenes and removed impaired drivers from our streets.”

Brown said there were two collisions involving pedestrians and DUI arrests, which overlapped with the shootings. The first collision happened at Abbott Road and Library Lane. The second happened at Grand River and Gunson, and authorities recovered a firearm from the vehicle, Brown said.

The pedestrians in both cases are in stable condition, the first having been through surgery Sunday morning, Brown said.

She said the city’s fire department handled 91 incidents in 24 hours including 75 overnight. The busy night involved tapping in at least five other law enforcement agencies and several neighboring fire departments for mutual aid, Brown said.

She said she was grateful for the assistance and for her own department’s staff, many of whom were called in to help with the various incidents.