Leah Elizabeth Brown, a 22-year-old Shawnee resident and 2013 graduate of Bishop Miege high school, was among the three people killed when gunfire broke out on the streets of Lawrence, Kan., early Sunday morning.
Miege will hold its Rosary and Mass for students this morning with “special intentions offered for Leah and her family,” according to a message for the school community posted on the Miege Facebook page.
In high school, Brown was an active athlete, playing on the Stags’ soccer, volleyball and basketball teams. After graduation, she had decided to pursue a career in the armed services. She was on medical leave from U.S. Navy basic training at the time of Sunday’s shooting.
In addition to Brown, two Topeka men, Tre’Mel Dupree Dean and Colwin Lynn Henderson III, died in the gunfire. Lawrence police say that there were at least 20 shots fired in the incident, which took place in the street near 11th Street and Massachusetts. Two others were injured in the event, and were taken to the hospital for treatment.
Word of the shooting prompted response on social media from two northeast Johnson County elected officials who were opposed to efforts to expand concealed carry in the state. Rep. Stephanie Clayton said that the victims of the shooting deserved more than “thoughts”:
These families deserve action, as well as our thoughts. https://t.co/QChIXWJEsU
— ❄️Stephanie Clayton❄ (@SSCJoCoKs) October 1, 2017
Rep. Melissa Rooker said the mixture of college-aged students with guns in an environment where alcohol use was pervasive had resulted in a tragedy:
College kids, alcohol, guns, tragedy. https://t.co/rUPXTFGPIL
— Melissa Rooker (@MelissaRooker) October 1, 2017
