Officials on Monday shared new information regarding a mass shooting near Illinois Wesleyan University on Halloween night.
McLean County Coroner Kathy Yoder identified 19-year-old Giana Dettloff, a college student from Carol Stream, as the person shot and killed in the incident. A ninth victim was also identified during a press conference gathering public officials with members of the media at Bloomington Police headquarters.
The victims were between the ages of 16 and 22 [seven female, two male], including four local college students and two others from Bloomington. The shooter or shooters have been generally described to police as Black males.
Police Chief Jamal Simington said the incident occurred outdoors in a common backyard of 109 E. Division St. during a Halloween party. The block, which abuts the Illinois Wesleyan University baseball field, consists mainly of residential rental properties.
Simington said he spent over an hour with Dettloff’s parents Sunday morning.
“She was their only daughter,” he said. “She was described as full of life, a sweet girl with a very bright future, and an athlete who was visiting one of her best friends at our local university.”
“My prayers are with the community and others throughout America which experienced significant gun violence this past weekend,” Simington said. “These events devastate families, harm communities and have no place in a civilized society.”
Simington said an officer was responding to a call for service nearby and at around 1:21 a.m. Sunday heard 10 shots fired. He arrived within a minute and encountered a male with a gunshot wound to his arm. The officer proceeded to the backyards and discovered three more people injured. Additional officers arrived and rendered aid, including CPR, applying a tourniquet and addressing bleeding while waiting for paramedics.
Simington commended first responders for their life-saving efforts, saying those injured were in ambulances on route to the hospital within 20 minutes of the first officer’s arrival on scene.
A previously unknown ninth victim, a 19-year-old female from Hoffman Estates who attends Illinois State University, was treated and released Sunday morning. The eight injured individuals include:
- Male, 19, IWU student from Plano with a right forearm wound, stable condition
- Female, 18, from Carol Stream with a leg injury, upgraded from critical to stable condition
- Female, 19, ISU student with a gunshot wound to the ankle, stable condition
- Female, 19, ISU student from Hoffman Estates, treated and released
- Female, 19, Quincy University student from Woodridge with chest, arm and abdomen injuries; updated from critical to stable condition
- Male, 22, from Bloomington in stable condition
- Female, 18, a Glenbard North High School student from Carol Stream
- Female, 16, Bloomington High School student with a graze wound, treated and released
Simington said six of the nine victims are Caucasian and three are African American.
‘This party was noticeably peaceful’
Simington said BPD added extra officers for a rare Saturday Halloween, which included an extra hour due to the daylight saving time change. Twenty officers were assigned to patrol Saturday night, including the area where the shooting took place.
“This party was noticeably peaceful, jovial and there were no disturbances witnessed or reported prior to the shooting,” Simington said. “There was no indication or warning that a shooting would occur.”
By midday Monday, authorities could not confirm whether the party was part of an organized event and did not know if one or multiple shooters were responsible. Estimates place the crowd somewhere between 150 and 200 people.
BPD spokesperson Officer Bryce Janssen said the circumstances that led to the shooting are still under investigation, but the department believes it is an isolated incident.
“There’s no reason to believe that this is somebody who’s trying to start a trend or something of that nature,” Janssen said.
Police continue to plead for help, requesting people with information about the incident to come forward. That includes sharing cell phone or doorbell camera footage, text messages or social media posts that could help them identify a suspect. Bloomington Police has provided an online portal where students and other community members can submit digital evidence.
Simington said the most important information to them right now is “who” and “why.”
“Those people responsible and what led up to it,” he said. “And again, it could be something so small, but it could be relevant in our investigation.”
Janssen acknowledged witnesses could be hesitant to come forward who may have been present at a party where underage drinking might have taken place.
“What we are focused on right now ... is the shooting investigation and only the shooting investigation,” he said. “Immediately after the shooting occurred, everybody fled. Everybody that was able to flee took off and ran. We’ve since had numerous people come back after the fact and provide details to us, but there’s still a lot of people that may have information out there that could be helpful.”
‘I’m angry’
Illinois Wesleyan Dean of Students Karla Carney-Hall said they strongly support the strength of BPD’s response and the quality of their investigation.
“We continue to reinforce that students on our campus are safe, and are safe in community together,” she said.
Carney-Hall said the university has been “talking about Halloween since August.”
“Because we knew,” she said. “A Saturday night, an extended evening—we asked them to be responsible neighbors, to be responsible leaders and outstanding social hosts for the weekend."
Carney-Hall said IWU sent emails to students urging them to think critically about their choices for Halloween and had internal discussions about campus responses to any disturbances.
The university is offering support through campus counseling, and Carney-Hall acknowledges justifiable fear regarding gun violence.
“I met with our Student Senate last night and we were doing a one-word check in. And one of our students said, ‘I’m angry. I’m angry that gun violence continues across our country and I have to continue to think about this when I engage in our community.’”
Sunday morning’s mass shooting was among several instances of gun violence across the U.S. CNN has reported more than a dozen people, including Dettloff, were killed over the weekend. Bloomington Mayor Dan Brady said the new light ring installed as part of the updated Downtown streetscape will be illuminated in IWU colors [green and white] Monday night to give people space to reflect on the experience.
