Rowdy group blamed for bus shooting
A Twin Cities man remains in critical condition after being shot on Metro Transit's Route 5; police plan to put more officers aboard.
By Chao Xiong, Star Tribune
Last update: March 09, 2007 – 9:50 PM
A Twin Cities man was trying to quell unruly behavior by rowdy passengers on a Metro Transit bus when one of them shot him in the chest, police said Friday.
Thursday's shooting left Cleveland Montgomery, 34, in critical condition at North Memorial Medical Center in Robbinsdale.
And the crime prompted Metro Transit, Minneapolis police and community activists to redouble their efforts to maintain safety and decorum on Route 5, the busiest route in the metro area and one where trouble sometimes occurs.
Police said four to five young men boarded the bus Thursday evening and sat near the rear, talking loudly.
Minneapolis police Capt. Mike Martin said the men, in their late teens and early 20s, were being "jerks." The group didn't appear to target anyone in particular; about 50 people were on board, authorities said.
Montgomery was near the rear and tried to calm the group, Martin said.
"There was no reference to him being rude or using profanity," Martin said.
According to authorities, the group got up to leave as the bus was coming to a stop on Emerson Avenue N. near 18th Avenue. One of the men verbally harassed Montgomery and shot him about 7:12 p.m.
Nobody has been arrested and no suspect descriptions were released. Investigators are pulling still shots from the bus security camera.
"It was wrong"
Montgomery has two bullet wounds in his chest and another in his arm, said his aunt, Marva Long. One of the bullets traveled into his colon, requiring part of the organ to be removed, Long said. Another bullet exited his shoulder and a third is in his stomach, she said.
"It was wrong. It was wrong," she said of the shooting. "And they're going to pay."
Montgomery, a regular bus passenger, is sedated and is scheduled to undergo surgery Sunday, Long said. According to his aunt, he was going home to Brooklyn Center from Block E in downtown Minneapolis when he was shot.
Police and Long said that although Montgomery has a criminal history, including a drug conviction, it did not factor into the shooting. He didn't appear to know the suspects.
Metro Transit spokesman Bob Gibbons said the suspects probably got away when the bus driver pulled over. Drivers are instructed to stop their buses when there's an altercation, let out passengers who choose to leave and then drive to a safe spot and call police, he said.
"We don't want to confine trouble on the bus," he said.
The No. 5 route, running from Brooklyn Center through Minneapolis and to the Mall of America, has seen trouble before. In 2005, a boy was dragged off a bus on the route and beaten.
Before the shooting, Metro Transit planned to place uniformed and plainclothes officers on buses across the metro area; now there will be a strong focus on the No. 5 route in light of Thursday's events, said Metro Transit Police Chief David Indrehus.
Minneapolis police have been told to pay closer attention to the route, including checking on bus stops. MAD DADS (Men Against Destruction/Defending Against Drugs and Social Disorder) planned to ride the route Friday night. Members began riding it last summer to make passengers feel safer; they ride a few times a month and plan to continue through this summer.
Police and Metro Transit officials recommend that passengers notify bus drivers of trouble instead of taking matters into their own hands.
