Shooting at Washington Park Beach leaves locals concerned for beach safety

 

MICHIGAN CITY, Ind. --- A Memorial Day shooting that took place at Washington Park Beach in Michigan City leaves one person critically injured. The Michigan City Police Department says that person is currently being treated at Franciscan Health Michigan City Hospital. Details concerning have not been released at this time as the LaPorte County Prosecutor's Office is currently investigating the shooting.

“These things never really happen here," says a regular visitor to Washington Park Beach, Michael Berger. "This is a fluke.”

A Memorial Day beach trip gone wrong, when a shooting at Washington Park Beach sent a person to the hospital, fighting for their life. Neighbors were shocked to see first responders pull up to a normally-quiet part of the shoreline.

“We saw police cars and ambulances, and we saw them take the young man away in the car," says Sandy Rubenstein, a nearby resident. "He was severely injured, obviously. And that’s all we really heard, is that he got shot and it was a little further down on the beach.”

People who live nearby say this is normally a spot used by locals except for summer holidays.

“On Memorial Day, the Fourth of July, and Labor Day, bad people come to this beach," Rubenstein says.

“We keep this beach pristine, and we don’t put up with bad actors," says Berger.

Rubenstein lives across the street from the parking lot to that particular beach stop, an he thinks the addition of that extra lot has put the safety of the nearby residents at risk during the summer holiday season.

“My suggestion is that on certain holidays, they close this lot so people will have to go to the main parking; there are thousands of parking spaces there," Rubenstein suggests. "This becomes a free-for-all. And with the gun laws going into effect, this is not going to be the only time this happens.”

Folks in Michigan City just hope this doesn't become a pattern.

“People think ‘oh, you’re here at the beach, you can get shot on that beach’. Well, we don’t want that to happen," says Rubenstein. "We want to take steps to make sure it doesn’t happen again.”

“If you’re going to come to our beach, please act accordingly," Berger pleads.

The shooting will be addressed at a council meeting scheduled for Wednesday. Residents plan to voice their concerns.