Even in the early hours of the morning, Iowa City stays bustling, full of college students leaving one of the city’s many bars. This is especially true on a Saturday night.

At around 2 a.m. Sunday morning, a large fight broke out in downtown Iowa City’s pedestrian mall. The police were called, but by the time they arrived at the scene, they heard gunshots.

Five people were injured, three of whom were identified as University of Iowa students.

The incident happened near East College and Clinton streets in the pedestrian mall that contains popular spots, including Yotopia, a community-favorite frozen yogurt shop; the Iowa City Public Library and a playground. It is also home to numerous bars that University of Iowa students and community members frequent during later hours.

The ICPD identified five people of interest. They have now identified Damarian M. Jones, a 17-year-old from Cedar Rapids, as being allegedly responsible.

One victim suffered a life-threatening injury to her head and remains in critical condition. Another victim is in the hospital in stable condition. The three remaining victims have been released.

In response to the violence, local organizations organized a vigil Monday evening. At 6 p.m., over 100 community members gathered at Trinity Episcopal Church, where local faith leaders and members of Moms Demand Action For Gun Sense In America spoke for around 30 minutes before leading the group over to the pedestrian mall where the shooting took place.

Rev. Nora Boerner led the ceremony at the church. After her introduction, she introduced Temple Hiatt, who leads Johnson County’s chapter of Moms Demand Action, a nationwide organization for gun safety advocacy.

Hiatt herself is a survivor of gun violence, making the issue especially personal to her. She encouraged survivors to primarily focus on taking care of themselves, saying some days, she can be visible as a survivor, but other days, she needs to take a break.

“Don’t let anyone make you feel like what you experienced is something you just have to get over. Take all the time you need, and when it’s needed, take more time, and when you’re ready, we’re here for you,” she said.

After Hiatt spoke, Rabbi Esther Hugenholtz of the Agudas Achim Congregation took the pulpit to lead vigil attendees in a prayer condemning gun violence.

“Source of strength, rock of justice and truth, you call upon us to stand in the name of common sense and reason: to witness on behalf of the innocent, of the cut down, the widow, orphaned and bereaved, to answer the scourge of senseless loss, to advocate for gun control, to remove military weapons from a civilian population, to return sanity to our laws, our policies and our lives.”

Following the prayer, Hugenholtz sang “Tree of Life” by Nefesh Mountain. The song was written following the 2018 shooting at the Tree of Life synagogue in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, which killed 11 people and wounded six in the deadliest antisemitic attack in American history.

Trinity clergywomen Boerner and Rev. Brenda Peconge then led attendees in a prayer for healing and remembrance for the victims and others affected by gun violence. Before praying, Boerner spoke on what a prayer could be, especially in the wake of violence.

“I wanted to let you know that lament, if you’ve heard that word before, is a legitimate prayer. Anger is a legitimate prayer. Frustration, pain, anything that you are feeling, and anything you believe, you can offer to God, higher being, source, whatever that may be. If at night you need to scream and say, ‘Why, God, why?’, that is a legitimate prayer. Anything that you pray is real,” Boerner said.

After Boerner prayed, Peconge, the head pastor at Zion Lutheran Church, read excerpts from the prayer collection “To Light Their Way” by Kayla Craig, preaching on the community’s role in overcoming gun violence.

“May we lay down our swords and our fighting words and our deep desire to be right,” Peconge said. “If we shout, may we shout good news to the poor. If we fight, may we fight injustice. If we push, may we push doors open for freedom. If we wrestle, may we wrestle with you. If we break, may we break the chains of captivity. If we defend, may we defend the vulnerable. If we tear down, may we tear down the walls that divide.”

After the prayers, Boerner led the gathered community members in a short song, “What We Need Is Here,” which they would then sing at the site of the shooting. As the ceremony ended, attendees lit candles and filed out of the church.

The group walked over to the pedestrian mall mostly in silence, with the clergy ringing a bell at the front of the procession and some members towards the back humming “What We Need Is Here.”

Arriving at the spot of the shooting, a plaza right across from the Old Capitol Mall and next to Yotopia, Boerner and other faith leaders spoke about reclaiming the space from the horrors of gun violence. They also led the group through prayer and a minute of silence in recognition of the violence.

Rev. Jay Elmquist of the Episcopal Diocese of Iowa hoped the vigil would allow the Iowa City community to reclaim the space.

“What I think it does for Iowa City folks, especially, is that it just creates this space as a community space and continues to allow us to express ourselves, whoever we are,” Elmquist said. “Whether we’re church people or not church people, people of faith or not, we are able to connect with one another and just be a community together here in this space.”

As the vigil concluded, the faith leaders and volunteers from Moms Demand Action and Free Mom Hugs remained at the scene, offering support and words of advice to those who attended.

”It’s heartbreaking. Our city should be sanctuary for everyone. We’re just here to show up with care and solidarity for our fellow Iowa Citians,” Hugenholtz said. “We can hopefully bring a little bit of support or comfort to hard knowledge like this, and also kind of create a buffer to signal clearly, ‘This is not what we want, and this is not who we are,’ and so immediately kind of raising a banner for the preciousness of life.”

This story was originally published on West Side Story on April 23, 2026.