Video shows part of fight, gunfire at drive-in movie night at Lakewood park
Video provided to The News Tribune by a 45-year-old man shows part of a fight that ended in gunfire near a city-sponsored drive-in movie night at Lakewood’s Fort Steilacoom Park on Friday.
The Steilacoom man was there with his family for the movie. He requested his name not be used for fear of retaliation from those he saw fighting and firing gunshots.
He told The News Tribune he saw a group of young adults congregating in one of the parking lots surrounding the park area, midway between the entrance of the park and the drive-in movie.
The call came in at 9:50 p.m. for a fight with shots fired near the entrance of the park, Lakewood’s Lieutenant Chris Lawler said Saturday.
The Disney movie, “Coco,” was scheduled to play at 8:30 p.m. The city has since rescheduled the showing.
The Steilacoom man said several cars arrived, one of which was boxed in by the others. The trapped car crashed into one of the vehicles, and the incident escalated when someone with a gun got out of a car, he said.
The last few seconds of the video he shared with The News Tribune shows someone running on the grass toward the drive-in event. Gunshots can be heard. The witness said another person began shooting as well, and those in the cars drove off.
The movie was being shown farther into the park, and no one watching the film was injured, Lawler said.
The movie-goer said some parents covered their children on the ground as gunshots rang out.
The Steilacoom man said he has spoken with police.
“A vehicle was stopped that was involved, but no one is being cooperative,” Lawler said in an email. “No victims from that shooting came forward. Detectives are having a tough time piecing everything together due to the fact that no one is talking or being cooperative.”
This story was originally published July 10, 2021 at 5:05 PM.
