Since then, authorities have confirmed that bullets struck an SUV in which Schoolboy Q was a passenger -- an act that doesn't appear to be random. Yet even as Schoolboy Q hit a new stage in, of all places, Iceland, questions were raging about the way law enforcers conducted a search for the unknown gunman, who remains on the loose at this writing.
As Backbeat's Kiernan Maletsky reported, Schoolboy Q had just gotten into a white SUV near the south entrance of the amphitheater (the location was in the vicinity of the Trading Post) when a gunman opened fire. The performer, born Quincy Hanley, wasn't hit, but three people in the vehicle were. A source tells Westword's Britt Chester that one of the people struck was Brandon West, who served as Schoolboy Q's driver. Here's a photo of West tweeted by @Ladimuzikluva: West piloted the SUV to Sixth and Kalamath, where police surrounded the vehicle, with Schoolboy Q briefly detained before the cops realized the ride contained shooting victims as opposed to the person on the other side of the gun.Shortly thereafter, Schoolboy Q, who had earlier tweeted a photo from Colorado of himself with Nas....
Wit THA G.O.A.T ESCO pic.twitter.com/QoOcawNG22
— ScHoolboy Q (@ScHoolBoyQ) June 20, 2014
...quickly informed fans that he was uninjured....
im str8...... dont trip
— ScHoolboy Q (@ScHoolBoyQ) June 20, 2014
...and added this update to make it clear he wasn't letting the incident slow him down:
and IM STILL GOING TO ICELAND 2MORROW, & NEW YORK WEDNESDAY
— ScHoolboy Q (@ScHoolBoyQ) June 21, 2014
Evidence that he made it to Iceland comes via this Schoolboy Q retweet:
@ScHoolBoyQ #swordfight @secret_solstice Iceland woof #midnightsunfest pic.twitter.com/Qs0WyEPC2K
— Haukur Þorsteinsson (@hawk_attacks) June 22, 2014
Back in Colorado, Fox31 quoted Jefferson County Sheriff's Office public information officer Jacki Kelley as saying the incident "does appear to be a targeted shooting rather than random." Nonetheless, the suspect, described only as an African American man around six feet in height, has not yet been nabbed, and neither has the weapon used -- reportedly a rifle -- been recovered.
Meanwhile, debate continues to rage about the manner in which the post-concert search for the gunman took place.
Continue for more about the Red Rocks shooting at the Nas-Flying Lotus-Schoolboy Q concert, including additional photos. In the wake of the shooting, thousands of fans were delayed, many for hours, while searches were conducted of vehicles leaving the Red Rocks grounds. Questions about the approach of Jeffco sheriff's personnel immediately arose, as symbolized by this meme: The JCSO responded to criticism via this post on its Facebook page:Law enforcement agencies that responded to the shootings at Red Rocks acted cautiously and appropriately during their attempts to locate an armed gunman who attempted to murder three victims last night. Our mission was to provide aid to those who were wounded, protect the crime scene for investigators, and conduct vehicle checks in an effort to locate any additional victims, possible witnesses and potential suspects.Plenty of folks countered, many of them negatively. Here's a sampling of their takes:
So hundreds of cars illegally searched at gunpoint and you have nothing to show for it? other than breaking the law? Way to go!Not every respondent criticized the JCSO, however. Here's the view of one defender:Welcome to another addition of Cops Gone Wild, where the Constitution is irrelevant, the meaning of Civil Liberties, is unknown, and "just doing our job" is used to justify the growing military police state.
Yeah and how did that warrantless searches on hundreds of vehicles end up for you geniuses?? "Black man wearing black clothing at a rap concert." I mean really did you guys fall out of the stupid tree and hit every branch on the way down or what? What would have happened if every car refused your illegal search? Would you have thrown over a thousand people in jail? Yeah that's what I thought.
You dumb bastards really think it is even remotely possible to search hundreds of cars occupied by multiple people last night? They'd still be there doing it right now. Grow a brain! And there's something called exigent circumstances that you people should lern about... if you can read & comprehend. All you idiots want to do is hate law enforcement for doing what needs to be done but if it was you, or someone you care about you'd scream not enough was done. So with this in mind STFU!!The JCSO is asking anyone with information about the incident, including those who might have been shooting video in the area of the Trading Post between 9 p.m. and 11 p.m., to contact the office's tip line at 303-271-5612.
Send your story tips to the author, Michael Roberts.
More from our Colorado Crimes archive circa June 20: "Photos: Triple shooting at Red Rocks following Nas-Flying Lotus-Schoolboy Q show."