A shot was fired at the University of Florida early Monday morning after a fight broke out between a group of bar patrons. The gunman is in custody, and no fatalities have been reported.
It was around 3:20 a.m. Monday when the school's security team issued a safety alert for those on campus (the University is currently open for the summer session). The gunman, 25-year-old Clay Allen Shanks, removed a gun from his girlfriend's purse during an altercation with another group after leaving a bar. He fired a single shot from the .38-caliber handgun. Everyone fled the scene when the shot was fired. Shanks was arrested several blocks away from the scene.
His girlfriend, 21-year-old Sarah Elizabeth Gooden, was also taken into police custody. Shanks has been charged with discharging a firearm on school property, battery, discharging a firearm while intoxicated and resisting arrest. Gooden is facing charges of carrying a concealed weapon and tampering with evidence.
Police are still searching for a potential witness who was in the area driving a blue Mazda truck, according to WFLA News Channel 8.
Both Shanks and Gooden are residents of Gainesville, where the University of Florida is located. The shots were fired near Murphree Hall, one of the student dormitories, which is across the street from the football stadium, according to Bay News 9.
Reports say Shanks punched another person in the jaw before drawing the gun. As of noon Monday, both were still in police custody, according to the Gainesville Sun. Bars in Florida close at 3 a.m., and the altercation took place shortly thereafter.
