'I don't feel safe': No arrests yet in West End shooting; police, EMS response questioned at wide-ranging forum

Yahoo

19-06-2025

JOHNSTOWN, Pa. – The largest mass shooting in Johnstown's recent history, during which four women were injured outside a nightclub early Sunday morning, has brought increased attention to public safety and race relations between the Black community and the Johnstown Police Department.
Those were among the many subjects discussed during a public forum, organized by Deputy Mayor the Rev. Sylvia King, at The Kastle in the city's West End on Wednesday.
The Johnstown Police Department is still looking for a person of interest, a Black man around 40 years of age, in the attack. JPD reported that the club, Vybe Lounge, denied a person entrance multiple times due to being filled to capacity on its grand opening night. The person then opened fire at people outside the lounge, located on Fairfield Avenue.
King, a Black woman, said the mass shooting 'not only affects the area here, the West End, it affects the residents as a whole in the City of Johnstown. I felt it was a good thing if we came together.'
About 40 people attended the forum, with several residents and local business owners actively participating in the discussion.
'What I took away from tonight's event is police, police, police, police,' King said. 'They can't be everywhere at one time. They cannot be anybody's personal bodyguard. But it's their presence.'
Club owner: 'I did as much as I could do'
Vybe owner Tianna Dukes said the shooter was not inside the building. She mentioned that her establishment had multiple security personnel and an ID scanner in place. Dukes contacted the police before her opening.
'I did as much as I could do to protect my customers,' Dukes said.
JPD Chief Mark Britton replied to Dukes: 'You did do everything right.'
Dukes, a Black woman, said she believed the way JPD officers responded to the victims and her staff was 'deplorable,' referencing some alleged comments she heard. A few other participants in the discussion accused Johnstown police officers – none by name – of racism over the years.
King said race relations between the Black community and police is a 'nationwide issue and it always has been.'
'Prayerfully, it will not always be,' she said.
Britton, a white man who joined the JPD in 2009, stated: 'I can tell you, as I'm doing this interview today, I have never seen it in our department. But I implore the community if there is an incident where that would happen, it would 100% be addressed by myself and the city manager.'
City Manager Art Martynuska, a white man, added: 'As much of support as we give to law enforcement officers, we understand all the stress that they're put under. We need to give them all the support that we can. But this administration will have zero tolerance for any type of racism that is exhibited by police officers.'
'He came out looking for trouble'
The shooter was still not in custody as of Wednesday night.
'Right now, I could open up if I want to,' Dukes said. 'I don't feel safe. There's no update on this, I'm calling him the devil, because that's what he is. He came out looking for trouble. He's the devil.'
King and Britton both stressed the importance of remembering that the shooter is the person responsible for the incident.
Vybe Lounge shootings
The Johnstown Police Department released a photo of a person of interest in the shooting of four women outside of Vybe Lounge, located on Fairfield Avenue in the city's West End neighborhood, around 12:30 a.m. Sunday, June 15, 2025.
'At the end of the day, I don't want the focus to be lost, and the focus is the person that did the shooting,' King said. 'That's who we need to focus on.'
Anybody with information about the suspected shooter can contact the JPD at 814-539-0889 or the Cambria County non-emergency number at 814-472-2100.
'There's got to be somebody out there that knows who this individual is,' Britton said. 'I wouldn't even call this person an 'individual.' This coward did a senseless act that injured four women for no reason.'
'I just thank God that I'm here and I'm alive'
A shooting victim, who spoke during the meeting but wished to remain anonymous for an interview, also expressed concerns about the suspect still being at large. She suffered an in-and-out wound on her left side and a dislocated shoulder on her right side.
The anonymous victim, a Black woman, was transported from the scene by her boyfriend when no emergency medical services showed up at the incident.
'We're looking into what may have transpired that night that EMS was not on scene,' Britton said.
The victim said that even days after the shooting, 'mentally, physically, I can't be alone.'
'I still don't feel like there's anything that got resolved today,' she said after the meeting. 'I came here to speak for myself because I am alive, and also came to support, to see what we can do as far as the community and to also support Tianna because she did everything right as far as cameras, security and everything on her end.'
The woman emphasized: 'I just thank God that I'm here and I'm alive.'