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University of Kansas students say an incident that left an 18-year-old male dead and a 16-year-old male in critical condition following an overnight shooting at The Jayhawk Cafe bar in Lawrence is shocking for the town.
"I would say that's kind of the most popular place that a lot of people and most college students go in Lawrence," Brooklyn Banderman, a KU student, said.
The popular establishment became a crime scene following the deadly shooting.
Officers were called to The Hawk, located on 13th and Ohio streets, just before 2 a.m. Saturday. When they arrived, they found two males suffering from gunshot wounds.
KU students Mason Nichols and Brooklyn Banderman heard the news Saturday morning.
"There's a text going around, and people started to talk about it and say a shooting had happened," Nichols said. "But not too many people knew exactly what all the details were, but that's kind of the first time we heard about it."
Multiple witnesses at the bar told officers the suspects fled immediately after the shooting. Officers found them just blocks away shortly after.
"There's not many people back yet, just because school doesn't start until Tuesday," Nichols said. "So, everyone's really at home still. So, there's never anything that really happens like this, too, which also makes things crazy."
One suspect is charged with first-degree murder, attempted first-degree murder, and aggravated assault. A second suspect faces charges of felony murder and aggravated assault.
Both suspects were booked into the Douglas County Correctional Facility and are not believed to be from the Lawrence area, according to police.
The Lawrence community is now supporting one another following this incident.
"Sorry for the family and condolences," Nichols said. "It's very sad and that the whole community of Lawrence is supporting them and is there for them. Sending our thoughts and prayers out to them."
This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
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