Shooting at Santa Rosa's Finley Park called gang-related

A 25-year-old man was shot and seriously injured during what police believe was a gang-related attack at Santa Rosa’s Finley Park late Saturday night, authorities said.

The shooting occurred shortly after 11:30 p.m. while the victim and about 20 other people were gathered to drink and party in the park, police said.

But witnesses who were questioned about the incident have not been forthcoming about what they may have seen, Santa Rosa Police Sgt. Tommy Isachsen said.

A 19-year-old suspected gang member was arrested on weapons charges a short time after the gunfire, however, after a responding officer stopped a car leaving the Finley Center parking lot with three people inside.

One of the passengers, Santa Rosa resident Eric Jovany Morales, was found to have a loaded firearm at his feet, police said.

It was not clear Sunday what role, if any, Morales may have played in what police are calling an attempted murder, but investigators believe Morales’ weapon had recently been fired, Isachsen said.

Morales was arrested for suspicion of unlawful possession of a loaded firearm in public and possession of a concealed firearm by an active gang participant. He remained in the custody of the Sonoma County Jail on Sunday morning, with bail of $30,000, jail personnel said.

Evidence from the scene indicates multiple weapons had been fired, said Isachsen, who supervises gang crimes investigations for Santa Rosa Police.

The victim was shot multiple times, though it was not clear by how many shooters. He was reported to be in serious but stable condition in the intensive care unit of a local hospital.

Isachsen said the victim is known to police and is an active gang member with a criminal record.

The man’s name has not been released because of the degree of the violence to which he was subjected and because of an effort to guard his safety, Isachsen said.

“I don’t even know that our victim was the intended target,” he said.

Isachsen said the shooting occurred in a parking lot on the east side of the park, outside the new Person Senior Wing and just south of the tennis courts which, later Sunday, were busy with several simultaneous games.

An ice cream social sponsored by The Leadership Institute for Ecology and the Economy was being held at one of the picnic sites. Nearby, helmeted swordsmen in the Society of Creative Anachronism, clad in armor and carrying shields, battled on the park lawn, having arrived at morning practice while detectives still swarmed the area.

By Sunday afternoon orange, spray-painted evidence markings stained the parking lot asphalt and adjacent sidewalk. A few spilled onto the grass as well.

It was very dark there when the shooting occurred Saturday night, Isachsen said, but it was clear there were witnesses who knew more than they were letting on.

There also were stragglers leaving at least one legitimate event held inside the Finley Community Center who investigators are hoping may have witnessed something that could aid the investigation, Isachsen said.

A desk attendant inside the center on Sunday said he was aware only of a baptism and a quinceañera having been on the books for Saturday, though he wasn’t sure what time either event was held.

Isachsen said detectives who contacted people leaving the building found them generally reluctant to stick around and talk about anything they might have seen.

“We really want those people to come forward,” he said.

“And even if they want to do it anonymously, we can handle that. We have ways to do that.”

A $2,500 reward has been offered by the Sonoma County Alliance “Take Back Our Community Program” to entice witnesses to report what they know.

Anyone with information can call 707-528-5222. Confidential, anonymous tips about any gang activity can be reported to 707-543-GANG (4264).

You can reach Staff Writer Mary Callahan at 707-521-5249 or mary.callahan@pressdemocrat.com. On Twitter @MaryCallahanB.