Detroit police chief speaks out after fatal shooting at Eastern Market
Detroit Police Chief James White speaks to reporters following the fatal shooting at Eastern Market on Sunday, September 15, 2024.
Courtesy of Detroit Police
The second fatal victim of Sunday’s tailgate shooting at Eastern Market has been identified as 25-year-old Jalen Welch, the Wayne County coroner’s office confirmed Tuesday afternoon.
Welch and Rayshawn Bryant, 40, were killed after police say an argument during a Detroit Lions party at the market’s outdoor venue known as Shed 6 ended in gunfire. Both men were from Detroit, police said.
Police have not released any details about what prompted the shooting, but Bryant’s family members told the Free Press that Bryant was trying to break up a fight between two men when he was shot.
A suspect from Oak Park was arrested, but no charges were filed.
Welch’s father, Mitch Welch, said his family is working on funeral arrangements for their loved one. They are not yet ready to speak publicly about his death, he said.
A Facebook page for Mt. Moriah Missionary Baptist Church in Talladega, Alabama, said Welch was the grandson of a local pastor. The church expressed its condolences to the Welch family on Facebook:
“May the God of all comfort comfort and bring peace to this family in their hour of grief,” the church wrote in the post.
Andrea Sahouri covers criminal justice for the Detroit Free Press. Reach her at [email protected].
