A 47-year-old man was shot following a car collision on Bay Road on Thursday night. The victim was hospitalized, suffering non-life-threatening wounds, after a minor car accident with the suspected shooter’s vehicle escalated into gunfire when they exited to exchange information. Three children between 8 and 14 years old were also in the victim’s car, but none were injured.
The shooting occurred near Flood Park and near the intersection of Bay and Hedge Road, less than two miles from M-A. Menlo Park police officers arrived at the scene around 8:39 p.m. after multiple reports of gunshots. Officers provided medical treatment for the victim before firefighters arrived and transported him to a hospital.
Senior William Giurlani was on the way home when police officers passed him near his house. “I was driving home, and I was down the street from my house, and a bunch of cops went around me,” Giurlani said. “My sister was actually walking the dogs when it happened, and could hear everything going on. She got really scared and went the other way.”
Residents could hear the disturbance from nearby homes. “They let off more than 10 shots, and [the] whole neighborhood could hear everything. The guy was apparently going door to door screaming for help,” Giurlani said.
As M-A sports practices were wrapping up, some residents were nearby when the events unfolded. “I was driving home from Thursday night football,” senior Connor Heinz said. “The police pulled me over, and were like, ‘You need to turn around immediately. Follow me, I’ll escort you out, but we can’t go over there.’ So I couldn’t go home for a while.”
“One of my neighbors was walking their dog, and she had to hit the floor right in front of where it happened and hide,” Giurlani said.
The situation has raised safety concerns for some community members. “I’m questioning the safety of my neighborhood, because I always thought it was a pretty safe and good area to live in, but it kind of seems like you have to watch out for things now and be careful,” Giurlani said.
However, others felt like it was an isolated occurrence. “I don’t really look at it as my neighborhood not being safe. It was kind of just an incident in the wrong place,” Heinz said.
The suspect has not yet been identified. “The suspect vehicle was described as a small white car that fled in an unknown direction and remains outstanding,” the City of Menlo Park stated on its website.
The investigation remains ongoing. Those with information regarding the situation can contact Detective Barron-Villa at [email protected].
