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Independence High School was set to kick off its football season against Kern County rival Centennial High, but game night turned to tragedy.
A gang-related shooting claimed the life of 17-year-old student-athlete Levi Brown inside the stadium gates on Friday, Bakersfield police confirmed.
On Sunday, school officials confirmed that Brown did not attend Independence High. In a Facebook post, football coach Vince Carter mourned his player, writing that Brown “was around the wrong crowd and was getting misled and misguided,” adding, “it hurts to see this is how it ended.”
It remains unclear what school Brown attended.
The shooting broke out around 8 p.m. following an argument just as the varsity squad was taking the field, according to the football team’s Instagram account.
Panic ensued as gunshots rang out. Video captured by KBAK/KBFX showed crowds of spectators and football players in full gear sprinting toward the exits. Responding officers took Brown to Kern Medical, where he was pronounced dead.
“We know that families look forward to coming out every Friday night to watch their kids play,” Bakersfield Police Officer Eric Celedon said at a news conference Friday. “This was an isolated incident, and we want to reinforce that school games in Bakersfield remain safe.”
Despite those assurances, the violent outbreak has left the community shaken.
“As a father who worked for the Kern high school district as a security guard, the district and the high school need to put a plan in place to prevent this from happening again,” said one parent on Facebook. “We need to hold the school district accountable for this incident.”
On Saturday, police confirmed that they arrested the suspected shooter, a 15-year-old boy. It was not immediately clear if the shooter was a student at Independence High.
“Our hearts are with the family of the 17-year-old who lost his life, [and] all those impacted by this tragedy,” said the Police Department on X. “We have a strong community. That strength will carry us forward.”
San Pedro coach Corey Walsh said “it was crazy” in describing the scene as sirens and police cars arrived at a game that was halted in the third quarter.
Brown is survived by a 1-year-old daughter, Carter told the California Post.