Police say seven people were injured, three were in critical condition, during an early-morning shooting on Saturday at a spring break party on the Florida Panhandle. An Alabama man was arrested immediately and charged with attempted murder.
According to CBS News, there were multiple 911 calls just before 1 a.m. reporting the shootings at the house party in Panama City Beach. When the deputies arrived at the scene, they found a sprawling crime scene with the victims inside the home, outside and across the street from it, as well as in the middle of the street.
Authorities set up a boundary and found a suspect that matches the description given by the witnesses. 22-year-old David Jamichael Daniels of Mobile, Alabama was charged with seven counts of attempted murder and was put into jail where he would stay until his first court appearance. A .40-caliber handgun was found in the yard of a home near the crime scene which is believed to have been used in the shooting.
The sheriff's office said that most of the victims were students from Alabama A&M University who were celebrating in Panama City Beach for spring break.
According to the university, three of the students were "innocent victims in the wrong place," ABC News reported.
Bay county Sheriff Frank McKeithen said in a news conference that he was not surprised by the shooting that had occurred. He said: "We have drunk people under the influence with guns and no respect for themselves, others, and-most of all-authority."
"We have a recipe for disaster," he added.