A toddler was about to slice her cake for a second‑birthday bash when gunfire erupted inside a packed banquet hall in Stockton on Saturday, killing four people—including three children—and leaving several others wounded.
The mother of the birthday girl, Patrice Williams, recalled that guests collapsed to the floor as soon as the shots rang. “I actually thought it was my balloons popping. It was gunshots,” Williams told reporters, adding that the scene had been “just unexpected. I don’t know what happened, and I’m just so shocked and lost.”
Authorities say three children (ages 8, 9, 14) and a 21‑year‑old were killed, while eleven people were injured, one in critical condition. Williams, whose daughter escaped injury, admitted she didn’t see the shooter and wondered why a child’s party would be targeted. “They deserve to be in jail. They deserve to go to hell,” she said, condemning the violence.
In the aftermath, the shooting is being investigated as a gang‑related incident. Among those downed were 14‑year‑old Amari Peterson and 21‑year‑old Susano Archuleta.
The photographs taken at the scene show blood and debris where people were fleeing, and show Williams being comforted by friends while she spoke to the press in Stockton on December 1. The images were credited to the Associated Press and David G. McIntyre for the NY Post.
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