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Tuesday, July 30, 2019

Gilroy Garlic Festival shooting: What we know right now

A mass shooting on the final day of the annual Gilroy Garlic Festival left three people dead Sunday and a dozen more injured. Here’s what we know so far:

• At least three people were fatally shot and 12 more were wounded, according to Gilroy police. The victims who were killed include a 6-year-old boy, 13-year-old girl and a male victim in his 20s, Police Chief Scot Smithee said at a news conference Monday morning. The Santa Clara County medical examiner identified the 6-year-old boy as Stephen Romero.


• All six gunshot wound patients at St. Louise Regional Hospital have been discharged, said Joy Alexiou, a Santa Clara Valley Medical Center spokesperson. Five remain in the care of the medical center, one in critical condition, one in serious condition and one in fair condition. The other two declined to release any information about their conditions. The patients treated at Santa Clara Valley Medical Center range from 12 to 69 years old, she said.
• Police identified the suspected gunman as Santino William Legan, a 19-year-old Gilroy man. Police said he used an AK-47-style assault rifle that was purchased July 9 in Nevada. No motive was known for the shooting. Public records show that Legan previously lived in Walker Lake, Nev.
• At around 5:41 p.m. Sunday, Legan opened fire and sent thousands of people running for their lives, police said. Three Gilroy police officers responded within a minute and were able to fatally wound Legan, Smithee said. “We had thousands of people there in a very small area,” Smithee said. “It could have gone much worse, so fast.”
• Authorities were searching the Gilroy home of Legan’s family Monday morning, and neighbors confirmed that he lived at the home on Churchill Place. Police left the home at about 8:15 a.m. carrying several bags of evidence.
• Reports of a shooting came from the north side of the festival, Gilroy Police Chief Scot Smithee said. Officers were in that area and engaged the suspect in less than a minute. It appears the suspect cut through a fence to gain access to the festival, Smithee said.
• Witnesses told police there might have been a second perpetrator, but this person has not been found and it’s unclear if this person also would have fired a weapon or served in a support role, Smithee said.
• More than 20 agencies — federal, state, county and local agencies — have offered support to Gilroy police, Smithee said. Law enforcement that responded to the scene include police from Gilroy and the Santa Clara County Sheriff’s Office, as well as the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives. First responders from San Jose and Salinas were also on scene. The FBI is assisting with the investigation.
• The Gilroy Garlic Festival is an annual three-day event held in Christmas Hill Park. Sunday was the final day of this year’s festival, which was created in 1979. The festival donates tens of thousands of dollars each year to local nonprofits, Mayor Roland Velasco said.
• Police are asking the public to submit tips or information on the shooting, including video. Police set up a special tip line at 408-846-0683.
• Two clinicians will be available for mental health counseling for people who were at the festival. One will be at Live Oak High School in Morgan Hill and one will be at Christopher High School in Gilroy, officials said.

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