PITTSBURGH — Pittsburgh police on Monday confirmed an officer had responded to a noise complaint at a North Side home late Saturday night, just 90 minutes before gunfire rang out through the building and on nearby streets, killing two teenagers and injuring several others in one of the largest mass shootings in Pittsburgh’s history.
That confirmation was the only new information about the shooting or the investigation that came from officials Monday, a day after Pittsburgh’s East Allegheny neighborhood became a focal point of the nation’s escalating gun violence crisis.
On Tuesday morning, police Chief Scott Schubert said in a TV interview that police still have not identified any suspects and continued his pleas for the public’s help.
Meanwhile, schools in and around the city were grappling with the aftermath of two of their students getting killed and several others suffering injuries after attending the party at the Airbnb, where as many as 200 people — many underage — had gathered.
Surveillance video from a neighbor’s security system appeared to show partygoers on Suismon Street and a Pittsburgh police vehicle leaving the site around 11 p.m. Saturday. In a statement Monday afternoon, Public Safety confirmed a Zone 1 officer had been sent to the home to address a complaint from a nearby resident.
About an hour and a half later, after the officer had left the scene and people in the home complied with instructions to turn down the music, around 90 shots were fired in the Airbnb and on surrounding streets. Mathew Steffy-Ross and Jaiden Brown, both 17, were killed, while several more were shot and others were injured while trying to escape the mayhem around 12:30 a.m. Sunday.
Mathew and Jaiden were being mourned by school administrators as city officials continued piecing together the tragic events and pleaded for anyone with information to come forward.
Schubert, in an interview Tuesday morning with Post-Gazette news partner KDKA-TV, said that detectives are “doing everything they can” but still have not identified any suspects.
“To be honest with you, to me, it’s a little disheartening that people are so quick to put stuff on social media but not contact the police right away,” the chief said.
Authorities said Monday that the officer who responded to the noise complaint around 11 p.m. spoke with a man who came down the stairs. The two spoke out of view of the upstairs portion of the house, where the party was being held, according to police.
The officer told the man, who police did not identify, to turn down the music, which he did. Before leaving, the officer told the man that if police were called back, they would have to shut down the party. The officer left without making a report, and police did not return until the shooting occurred.
“There was nothing that indicated there was issues going on at that time,” Schubert told KDKA on Tuesday.
Schubert has said multiple times that some people from the party have come forward, but he continued to ask Tuesday for more assistance, given the number of people who likely would have information because of the size of the party.
“When you have that many people there, they need to think about the fact that this could be friends [who were shot],” the chief said Monday in an interview with CNN. “One person shot, one person killed is too many, but we’re very fortunate there weren’t more people shot and killed in that incident.”
Schubert refused Tuesday morning to say whether police have spoken with the person who rented the building via Airbnb.
Asked whether an incident of this magnitude has caused the department to reassess its efforts in curbing gun violence around the city, Schubert said officials are “always reassessing” and that it remains a primary goal to remove shooters from city streets.
“We’re focused with everything we have,” he said.
MOURNING THE VICTIMS
Mathew was enrolled in the PHASE 4 Learning Center in Pleasant Hills, which is associated with the Grace Non Traditional Christian Academy, for only two months, but he made an impact on those who worked and attended the school, CEO Terrie Reed said.
"He was a young man who definitely had a very promising future," Reed said. "He was talented, he was bright, he just needed an opportunity."
PHASE 4 provides education, counseling and career-planning to at-risk populations. At the school, Reed, said Mathew finally found a place where he belonged. He was interested in music and had just recorded a music video in the school's studio. Reed said she had spoken to Mathew's father, who was "heartbroken."
"This is just a tragedy," she said. "It's another senseless act of violence. Kids don't realize the finality of shootings."
Before going to PHASE 4, Mathew had attended Propel Braddock Hills High School, spokeswoman Sonya Meadows said.
Although Mathew no longer attended the high school, Meadows said that appropriate resources would be available to students and staff when they return from spring break later this week.
"There is no question that events like what happened this weekend can affect people deeply," she said.
Gateway School District was operating under a modified lockdown Tuesday in response to the shooting, Post-Gazette news partner KDKA-TV reported. Mathew was from Pitcairn, a municipality within the Gateway district, but he did not attend the high school. Superintendent William Short said in a letter to families and staff that some Gateway students may have been at the Airbnb party and the district is cooperating with the investigation.
Jaiden was a senior at Woodland Hills High School, which said in a statement that it was "devastated by the loss of one of our students over the weekend and we extend our deepest sympathies to the family impacted by this senseless violence."
In a letter to the community, acting Superintendent Daniel Castagna said the school would provide both in-house and external interventions to students and staff members who need them.
Castagna asked school staff to be vigilant and present, as well as patient, throughout the week as students return from spring break.
"Violence impacts students at all levels and in every building, so tomorrow, more than ever, they need us," Castagna said. "I have full faith in our team and am confident no other staff is better equipped to handle such a heavy burden."
CALL FOR ‘FULL TRANSPARENCY’
Pittsburgh City Councilman Bobby Wilson, who represents East Allegheny, said he sent a message Monday afternoon to Public Safety Director Lee Schmidt asking for a full briefing on "what occurred with the call of the police to the property so that I can fully understand" the officer’s response to the noise complaint.
"I'm fully aware, and I want to make sure there's full transparency in this whole thing," Wilson said.
Mayor Ed Gainey had said in a statement Sunday the city is “using all available resources” to investigate the shooting.
Gainey, who has worked from home in recent days as he recovers from COVID-19, did not respond Monday to questions left through his staff.
At a press briefing Monday, White House press secretary Jen Psaki said the shooting was “a reminder of the need to take more steps to stop gun crime, something the president has strongly supported and advocated for since — for decades in public office: cracking down on gun traffickers, putting more cops on the beat, investing in community anti-crime programs.”
Airbnb announced Monday that it intends to file a civil suit against the person who rented the unit.
The company had said Sunday that the renter would be banned for life from renting through Airbnb, which has strict policies against guests holding parties. Under its agreement with property owners, Airbnb insures them against damages by renters.
As part of its agreement with renters, Airbnb won't publicly identify them and won't say what the renter told the company it planned to do during the rental unless the company receives a court order.
Airbnb has taken down the rental listing for the property at 900 Madison Ave., which is owned by 900 North Group LLC. The owners could not be reached for comment.
HOSPITALS STILL TREATING VICTIMS
Of the seven patients treated by Allegheny Health Network at Allegheny General Hospital, four patients were discharged and one remained in serious condition, hospital spokesperson Stephanie Waite said. Two of the seven treated at AGH were Mathew and Jaiden, who died at the hospital.
A UPMC spokesperson said that at least two remained hospitalized in their system.
Pittsburgh Public Schools said four of its students were among those injured — though the district did not identify how seriously — and that others may have been at the scene.
The district’s schools operated on a modified lockdown Monday, meaning students were required to stay inside the school and only previously approved visitors could enter school buildings.
PART OF A VIOLENT STRETCH
Sunday’s shooting was the fourth in less than 30 hours within city limits and the worst mass shooting in Pittsburgh since the 2018 Tree of Life synagogue massacre in Squirrel Hill. It was also the third mass shooting in the U.S. within 24 hours on Easter weekend.
A man was killed in a shooting around 2 a.m. Saturday in Marshall-Shadeland, another North Side neighborhood. In a separate shooting Saturday afternoon, three people were shot in the city’s East Hills neighborhood; two were transported to a hospital in critical condition.
On Friday night, a man was injured in a shooting in the Hill District. Earlier in the week, three men were injured when at least 26 rounds were fired in the Hill District.
Nationally, two more mass shootings occurred over the weekend, both in South Carolina. Ten people were shot at a Columbia mall Saturday evening, and nine people were shot and injured in Hampton County on Sunday.
In the city of Pittsburgh, 68 people have been shot since the start of 2022, including 20 who were killed, according to a Post-Gazette tally of police blotter entries.
As of April 17, 2021, 51 people had been shot in Pittsburgh, 15 of them fatally, according to a Post-Gazette tally.
U.S. Sen. Bob Casey, D-Pa., said in a statement early Monday afternoon that the recent spate of shootings in Pittsburgh and across the state is "emblematic of the unrelenting scourge of gun violence affecting our families, children and communities every single day."
He called on Congress to "take the necessary steps" and "pass commonsense gun violence prevention measures," including universal background checks for gun purchases, increased resources for survivors of shootings and more investment in community programs "to help address the root causes of this violence."
In a tweet Sunday morning, Pennsylvania's other U.S. senator, Republican Pat Toomey, called the shooting "Just awful" and wrote that his "thoughts are with the families, friends, and loved ones of those killed in Pittsburgh."
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