CHP: Freeway passenger shot at Berkeley work crew, no one hit
The passenger pointed a black handgun out the window and fired two rounds at a 14-person landscaping crew that had been hired by Caltrans.
A passenger in a white Ford Crown Victoria fired a gun at a landscaping crew Wednesday while exiting the freeway onto University Avenue in Berkeley, authorities report.
The shooting happened at 11:50 a.m. as the driver exited into Berkeley from westbound Interstate 80, the California Highway Patrol said in a prepared statement.
Authorities say the passenger pointed a black handgun out the window and fired two rounds at a 14-person landscaping crew that had been hired by Caltrans to work in the area. No one was hit.
The driver of the Crown Victoria then fled the scene, the CHP said.
The vehicle's occupants were described as Black men with short hair.
CHP Oakland said the motive for the shooting was "unclear at this time" and that traffic was not affected.
The shooting remains an ongoing investigation, the CHP said, which limited what details could be shared.
Authorities ask anyone with information about Wednesday's gunfire to call CHP Oakland at 510-457-2875 and ask for Officer Corbell.
Shootings on state highways have become a growing problem in California.
The East Bay Times reported in April that there had been 32 confirmed shootings on Bay Area freeways so far this year compared to nine over the same period in 2022.
Shootings in Berkeley, however, are down compared to 2022.
There have been 11 other confirmed shootings in Berkeley this year, wounding three people.
Emilie Raguso
There had been 26 shootings in Berkeley as of this time last year. Two people had been killed and seven wounded.
Note: This story was updated July 7 with an additional gunfire report for the year after BPD updated its records at that time.
