LAKE CITY, Fla. – One of three people shot Tuesday night near Annie Mattox Park in Lake City has just been released from a hospital, but police still don't know who fired the shots and are stepping up patrols.
Two other victims are still being treated, one who was airlifted to UF Health in Gainesville with critical injuries and the the other is at Lake City Medical Center and is stable.
Police say they are interviewing the 25 people who were there when the gunshots rang out.
The Police Department said they had already planned on upping patrols in the area this weekend because it coincides with the end of spring break and the Easter holiday. They said they may now increase patrols even more because of the shooting.
But there is silence Wednesday afternoon at Annie Mattox Park. Everything is calm and quiet with a few kids on the playground.
It's a complete change from Tuesday night when police tape and flashing lights filled the neighborhood.
"I didn't really want to go check it out, but it's crazy how things just happen that way. We had children in this neighborhood; there's children across the street. I have family here. I've been living here for so long. When things like that happen, it ruins things for kids at the park," Darrius Freeney, a Lake City resident, said.
Freeney said that he has younger family members that like to go to that park. He said that when things like this happen, it makes everybody question the park's safety.
"It's supposed to be a public park for children to go play. If things like that go on in public parks, then it just makes parents think, it makes them worry. The kids need places to go, but they won't be able to go," Freeney said.
The park is in the middle of a neighborhood, and people living in the area said that they want a heavier police presence to keep things like this from happening again. They said they shouldn't have to worry about gunshots when they walk outside or take the kids to the park.
"This neighborhood doesn't get a lot of attention. A lot of people are scared of this neighborhood. After what happened, it's just going to make them not want to come over here," Freeney said.
Police are still interviewing witnesses, trying to get the stories of everybody who saw the shooting. They said that right now, neighbors should not worry about a gunman being on the loose.
News4Jax crime and safety analyst Gil Smith said that people in any park should always be aware of what's going on around them, because a situation like this can escalate quickly no matter where you are.