LAWRENCE, Kan. -- During a news conference on Tuesday, Lawrence police announced the arrests of two suspects tied to a shooting that claimed the lives of three people and injured two others.
The shooting happened on October 1 along Massachusetts Street near 11th Street and claimed the lives of Leah Brown, a 22-year-old from Shawnee, Colwin Henderson, 20, of Topeka, and Tre’Mel Dean, 24, also from Topeka.
On Tuesday, police announced the arrests of two Topeka men, 19-year-old Dominique McMillon and 22-year-old Ahmad Rayton, for their suspected roles in the incident. Neither was charged with murder in any degree. McMillon faces charges including aggravated assault and battery. Rayton faces an attempted second-degree murder charge.
It was not immediately clear what roles the two men played in the shooting, which was initially reported as a disagreement near 11th and Massachusetts that escalated to deadly violence.
A district attorney said the attempted second-degree murder charge against Rayton was in regards to injuries against one of the victims who survived.
Lawrence police said there are still people they are seeking to interview, and they do anticipate further arrests in the case.
“We don’t believe this was a random act of violence. In fact, we believe this stemmed from a physical altercation just before,” said Captain Anthony Brixius with the Lawrence Police Department.
Lawrence police said Tuesday that they believe one or more individuals were specifically targeted while others were bystanders in the area.
Witnesses who spoke with 41 Action News said a fight began outside of Brothers Bar and Grill. One witness heard at least 10 shots before ducking for cover. Others heard as many as 18 gunshots.
“I was on my stomach right here, and I was watching it, and someone ran across. As he’s running across, he was getting hit and he fell right over there, right across the street,” said the witness, who did not wish to be identified.
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News of the arrests brought a mix of emotion for Gretchen Brown, the mother of victim Leah Brown.
On Tuesday, she told 41 Action News that she could clearly remember the moment her daughter’s friend called her in a panic.
“I was supposed to work the next morning. I was actually awake and having a hard time sleeping,” she explained. “Courtney called me on the phone right then and said, ‘They can't find a pulse. They're trying to stop the bleeding.’”
Gretchen Brown, who works as a nurse, said she immediately thought of the emergency response.
“I went right into nurse mode. I said, ‘Okay, are they taking her to Lawrence or are they going to fly her to KU? Where is she going?” she explained. “Eventually, Courtney said, ‘They're covering her up with a blanket and they're covering up her face.' I said, ‘No I think they're confused.’”
Gretchen Brown said Leah was planning on re-enlisting in the Navy before the shooting occurred.
“I still think I'm in a little bit of shock with this whole situation,” she explained. “I keep saying, ‘I feel like she's at boot camp again.'"
Following the announcement of the arrests, Gretchen Brown said she felt both relief over the two men being caught and sadness over the random violence.
“I’m saddened that our society and our community in the Kansas City area has turned to such violence,” she explained. “Fifty years ago, somebody would have had a black eye or maybe gotten a tooth knocked out. Now we're shooting into a crowd of people and killing innocent people."
Just over two weeks after the shooting, Gretchen Brown said the days since then have all blurred together.
“They didn't know any of the people involved or anything,” she explained. “They were just completely truly innocent victims."
Moving forward, Gretchen Brown said she plans to attend the hearings for the two men arrested in the case.
“If somebody is shooting into a crowd of people, they must not value their own life,” she explained. “There is no justice for Leah. The justice I think now is for the people who are now not at risk because these two people are off the street."
Lawrence police said they investigated around 200 leads following the shooting.
With more arrests anticipated, investigators ask anyone with information on the case to call the Lawrence Police Department or Douglas County Crime Stoppers at 785-843-TIPS (8477).
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[Editor's note: A previous version of this story misspelled the name of one of the suspects, Ahmad Rayton. The erroneous spelling, "Rayon", has been removed.]
