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GRAND RAPIDS, MI Jan 11 2013 -- Two men had been thrown out of the Orbit Room for fighting shortly before a contracted security guard was shot in the buttocks during a New Year's Eve "club night," said venue owner Don Dorshimer.
About 3 a.m., as some of the estimated 900 guests were leaving, the men who had been kicked out returned with guns and attempted to "bum rush" the door.
Dorshimer said they made it as far as the building's lobby when security guards stopped them. He believes gunshots were fired into the air, and a bullet hit a security guard in a downward trajectory.
Police originally said the victim was caught in the crossfire of two gunmen. He suffered nonlife-threatening injuries.
"I don’t believe they were shooting at him or anything," Dorshimer said.
The suspects took off while people nearby attempted to flee out a back door.
The event featured three or four DJs and was winding down by the time of the shooting, Dorshimer said. The box office was closed, and the bars were no longer serving for the evening.
Moe McCoy, who promoted R&B artist Torrey Carter, didn't see a "big commotion" from the stage. He said he wasn't aware there was a shooting until he left.
"Security did a great job by catching them before they got into the club," Dorshimer said of the suspects. "We had some security guys do some good security techniques in there to be quite honest ... my first concern was the security guy."
Promoters for “American Idol” winner Fantasia Barrino said the incident caused the cancellation of a Feb. 14 concert.
However, the Orbit Room believes the cancellation was due to the fact that only three tickets were sold by the time promoters cancelled on Monday, Jan. 7. Dorshimer said tickets had been on sale a few weeks before the shooting.
The venue has nine upcoming shows scheduled. No other artists have pulled out following the shooting, Dorshimer said.
In response to the Jan. 1 shooting, Dorshimer said the venue won't host "urban type" hip hop nights.
"I never had any of these problems at a classic rock show or a new age modern show," he said.
Recently, there have not been other significant violent incidents at the Orbit Room.
Scott Hammontree, general manager of The Intersection and talent manager of the DeltaPlex, said management is always on the lookout for violence, no matter the music genre.
"I’ve seen plenty of fights and we’ve taken weapons off people before and those aren’t always at hip hop shows. Those happen across the board," he said.
Hammontree referenced a Juicy J concert at The Intersection last weekend. Security was boosted because the venue was rented to an outside promoter, not as a reaction to the Orbit Room shooting.
"Generally thinking, both venues do a decent amount of what we call rentals to different promoters who want to do events," Hammontree said, referring to The Intersection and the DeltaPlex. "Something we won’t and don’t skimp on when dealing with other promoters is safety."
Source-MLive.com
About 3 a.m., as some of the estimated 900 guests were leaving, the men who had been kicked out returned with guns and attempted to "bum rush" the door.
Dorshimer said they made it as far as the building's lobby when security guards stopped them. He believes gunshots were fired into the air, and a bullet hit a security guard in a downward trajectory.
Police originally said the victim was caught in the crossfire of two gunmen. He suffered nonlife-threatening injuries.
"I don’t believe they were shooting at him or anything," Dorshimer said.
The suspects took off while people nearby attempted to flee out a back door.
The event featured three or four DJs and was winding down by the time of the shooting, Dorshimer said. The box office was closed, and the bars were no longer serving for the evening.
Moe McCoy, who promoted R&B artist Torrey Carter, didn't see a "big commotion" from the stage. He said he wasn't aware there was a shooting until he left.
"Security did a great job by catching them before they got into the club," Dorshimer said of the suspects. "We had some security guys do some good security techniques in there to be quite honest ... my first concern was the security guy."
Promoters for “American Idol” winner Fantasia Barrino said the incident caused the cancellation of a Feb. 14 concert.
However, the Orbit Room believes the cancellation was due to the fact that only three tickets were sold by the time promoters cancelled on Monday, Jan. 7. Dorshimer said tickets had been on sale a few weeks before the shooting.
The venue has nine upcoming shows scheduled. No other artists have pulled out following the shooting, Dorshimer said.
In response to the Jan. 1 shooting, Dorshimer said the venue won't host "urban type" hip hop nights.
"I never had any of these problems at a classic rock show or a new age modern show," he said.
Recently, there have not been other significant violent incidents at the Orbit Room.
Scott Hammontree, general manager of The Intersection and talent manager of the DeltaPlex, said management is always on the lookout for violence, no matter the music genre.
"I’ve seen plenty of fights and we’ve taken weapons off people before and those aren’t always at hip hop shows. Those happen across the board," he said.
Hammontree referenced a Juicy J concert at The Intersection last weekend. Security was boosted because the venue was rented to an outside promoter, not as a reaction to the Orbit Room shooting.
"Generally thinking, both venues do a decent amount of what we call rentals to different promoters who want to do events," Hammontree said, referring to The Intersection and the DeltaPlex. "Something we won’t and don’t skimp on when dealing with other promoters is safety."
Source-MLive.com