Two injured in shooting on Santa Rosa sidewalk

Santa Rosa police detectives are searching for at least one, possibly more, suspects in connection with a shooting that occurred early Thursday morning on a southwest Santa Rosa sidewalk.

Two men in their mid-20s were each shot multiple times about 12:30 a.m. while on the sidewalk in the 300 block of Sebastopol Road, near Dutton Avenue, said Santa Rosa Police Sgt. Christopher Mahurin. Police said the incident occurred after a verbal argument between several people escalated to gunfire.

The men, who were both hospitalized, were expected to survive. Their names were not disclosed.

Officers searched the area but were unable to find any suspects or a weapon, he said.

Violent crimes Sgt. Kyle Philp said both victims are from Santa Rosa. The shooting doesn’t appear to be gang-related, he said.

“As far as we can tell, there are no gang issues with this one,” he said.

Police in Rohnert Park and Santa Rosa, as well as sheriff’s deputies in the unincorporated areas of the county, have all responded to gang incidents in the past few weeks.

It was unclear how the suspect or suspects approached the victims, whether on foot or in a vehicle, he said.

“It looks like there was some type of argument between the victims and suspect or suspects, and someone pulled out a firearm and shot at them,” he said.

The gun was only described as a handgun.

“We don’t feel like there is any danger to the public,” he said. “It looks like a one-off disagreement between the victims and suspects. We have nothing to say the suspect is looking to shoot anyone else.”

Police are asking any witnesses to call 707-543-3590.

A reward of up to $2,500 is being offered by the Sonoma County Alliance Take Back Our Community Program for information leading to the arrest of the suspects in the shooting.

Staff Writer Chantelle Lee contributed to this report. You can reach Staff Writer Lori A. Carter at 707-521-5470 or lori.carter@pressdemocrat.com. On Twitter @loriacarter.