Teen Charged After 11 Bystanders Shot Near Florida A&M Homecoming

By Taylor Bennett. Oct 28, 2026

A 15-year-old boy is facing eleven attempted-murder counts after gunfire struck people near Florida A&M University’s football stadium during homecoming celebrations in Tallahassee. Police say the shooting grew out of a dispute between people who knew one another, but the injured bystanders were not believed to be the intended targets.

Anthony Rivers III was arrested after the October 24 shooting and charged with eleven counts of attempted second-degree murder and one count of possessing a firearm as a delinquent, according to Tallahassee police. Prosecutors said the case would proceed against him as an adult. The charges remain allegations; no verdict has been reached.

Twelve people were injured during the incident. Eleven sustained gunshot wounds, while another person was hurt while fleeing, according to police accounts carried by CBS News and CNN. Six of the gunshot victims were children, making the event particularly consequential for families attending the homecoming weekend.

A dispute and bystanders in the crowd

Police Chief Lawrence Revell said investigators believed the gunfire followed a conflict involving two or three people. He also emphasized that the victims did not appear to be the people involved in the original dispute. The victims were central to how authorities describe the case: the people injured were caught in the violence rather than identified as its targets.

The shooting occurred near Bragg Memorial Stadium on a night connected to Florida A&M’s homecoming events. The presence of a large social gathering helps explain why many people were nearby when shots were fired.

The Associated Press reported that the crowded streets outside Bragg Memorial Stadium prevented ambulances from reaching people who had been shot. Officers carried some of the wounded through the crowd to waiting emergency vehicles. Police said the youngest shooting victim was 11 and six of the people shot were minors. Authorities reported one patient in critical condition as of Sunday, October 25; the cited reports did not provide a later comprehensive update on all patients.

Tallahassee police initially reported that several people had serious injuries. By the following day, some of those wounded had been discharged from medical care while others remained hospitalized. CBS News reported that six gunshot victims were still being treated at one stage, including one person listed in critical condition.

The suspect and the evidence inquiry

Investigators arrested Rivers on October 25, according to a statement from the police department. The case drew national attention in part because of his age and the decision to pursue adult criminal charges.

Local reports said authorities had asked witnesses to share videos and other information from the crowd. Images and recordings may help investigators determine who participated in the dispute, where shots originated and how the incident unfolded, although the contents of any unreleased evidence remain unknown.

A court filing requested that certain investigative documents be sealed while police continued their work, according to follow-up reporting. The sealing means not every allegation or evidentiary detail was publicly available during the initial proceedings.

Families and the university community

The violence reached people who had come to a familiar public setting for a celebration. Police accounts describe injured bystanders, including children, rather than a confrontation limited to those alleged to have been involved in the initial disagreement.

Rivers appeared in court after the arrest and was ordered to remain detained, according to CNN reporting. Police continued investigating the altercation and the gunfire. The case’s central unresolved question is how a dispute between a small number of people escalated into injuries to eleven shooting victims and another person trying to escape.

References: CBS News / Associated Press | CNN Transcript