No students, faculty, or Yale affiliates were harmed in the shooting, which occurred at the intersection of Church and Center streets.
Jack Olson
Managing Editor, The Buckley Beacon
At approximately 2:30 a.m. on the morning of November 1, the New Haven Police Department (NHPD) responded to gunfire at the intersection of Church Street and Center Street in downtown New Haven. The intersection is just a few blocks from Old Campus, which houses many Yale College freshmen.
Four people were struck by bullets, and an 18-year-old female was killed. Two other victims were found on the scene: another 18-year-old female and a 21-year-old male. Another 21-year-old male checked himself into Yale-New Haven Hospital with gunshot wounds shortly after, according to an NHPD statement shared with The Buckley Beacon.
“This incident did not happen on the Yale campus and based on information shared by the New Haven Police Department, did not involve anyone affiliated with the university,” Yale University’s Office of Public Affairs and Communications told The Beacon in another statement.
The NHPD also said that closed-circuit camera footage documented an exchange of gunfire between two people in the area. According to the same NHPD statement, the four victims did not appear to be the intended targets of the shooting, and the two suspects are still at large.
“Our detectives are actively working on this case,” Officer Christian Bruckhart and NHPD spokesman told The Beacon in an email on Monday. “The Chief is hoping to provide an update in the next day or so.” NHPD has not since released an update.
The shooting comes just days after the Buckley Institute released a poll of 517 Yale undergraduates, with 74 percent of those polled expressing concern over crime in New Haven. The concern crossed political lines, with 71 percent of self-identified Democrats and 78 percent of Republicans indicating a belief that crime is serious in the poll. Exactly a year prior to the Saturday morning shooting, four victims were caught in a shootout on Chapel Street in November 2024.
On Tuesday, November 4, New Haven voters will hold elections for the city’s next mayor as well as dozens of other city officials. Incumbent Democrat Justin Elicker, who is seeking his fourth two-year term, cited decreasing crime as a reason for him running without a Democratic challenger in an interview with the New Haven Register.
Elicker’s Republican challenger, Steve Orosco, who is a former professional mixed martial arts fighter, has made public safety the top issue in his campaign. “New Haven is ranked high in violent crime in Connecticut and leads the state in fentanyl overdoses, with a crime index of 6, meaning we’re more dangerous than 94% of America,” his website alleges. “Persistent challenges like poverty, gang activity, and drug-related crime continue to drive these statistics.”
The NHPD’s investigation into the recent shooting remains ongoing, and is currently accepting anonymous tips from the public.