FAMU Homecoming Shooting: 15-Year-Old Charged As An Adult In Mass Shooting

Anthony Rivers III, 15, will be prosecuted as an adult after police arrested him in the shooting that hurt 12 people during Florida A&M University’s homecoming weekend, State Attorney Jack Campbell told WTXL.

Police announced the arrest Monday, October 26.

Detectives took Rivers into custody Sunday, a day after the gunfire near Perry and Manatee streets in Tallahassee. He faces 11 counts of attempted second-degree murder and possession of a firearm by a delinquent, police said.

At Monday’s detention hearing, Judge Andrew Sheeran barred Rivers from contacting victims or witnesses, including through someone else. Police must monitor his calls from juvenile detention unless he is speaking with his attorney. Judge Sheeran also prohibited social media access.

A judge agreed to keep the arrest affidavit sealed at the police department’s request to protect the investigation. Campbell told WTXL the November 16 arraignment date would likely change as the case moved to adult court.

Four of the 11 people shot were Leon County Schools students, the district confirmed Monday, according to WTXL.

The district said Rivers was not enrolled at one of its high schools. It declined to identify the injured students or their schools and said counselors were available for students affected by the violence.

The shooting on Sunday happened near Bragg Memorial Stadium during the school’s homecoming weekend. Officers helped move victims from the scene and get them medical care while the area was still unsafe, AllHipHop previously reported.

The youngest person hurt was 11. FAMU said after the shooting that its campus was safe and asked people to stay away from the area so officers could investigate.

Eleven people suffered gunshot wounds, and another injured an ankle while running away, police said. The injured included six adults and six juveniles.

Police linked the gunfire to a fight involving people who already knew each other. Detectives said their early work had not identified any of the injured as an intended target.