Cru lounge and nightclub located on H Street in Northeast D.C. is closed after a fatal shooting Saturday. (WTOP/Shayna Estulin)
A man is dead and three others were wounded during a shooting Saturday at a nightclub on H Street in Northeast D.C., police said.
According to authorities, officers responded just before midnight to a report of a shooting at the Cru lounge and nightclub in the 1300 block of H Street in Northeast.
Cru has been shut down by police for now, and its liquor license is suspended, pending a hearing.
There they found three men and one woman who were shot. All four were taken to hospitals by D.C. Fire and EMS. The three injured people sustained non-life-threatening injuries, D.C. police said.
One of the men, later identified as 31-year-old Blake Bozeman of Southeast D.C., died.
Blake Bozeman
Bozeman was a former basketball player for Morgan State University in Baltimore, Maryland, and the son of former Morgan State coach Todd Bozeman, the university confirmed to WTOP.
A photo of Blake Bozeman during his time as a Morgan State basketball player. (Courtesy Morgan State University Men’s Basketball)
Bozeman earned two degrees from Morgan State: his bachelor of science in marketing in 2014 and his master’s degree in 2016.
“The Morgan family extends our deepest condolences and prayers to the Bozeman family and friends. Our family was an extension of his and he was a shining example of what it means to be a student-athlete,” Morgan State officials said in a statement to WTOP.
Bozeman played four years as a starting guard for the Bears, according to the university.
“Blake finished his playing career ranked No. 2 on the school’s all-time minutes leaderboard (3717), No. 4 in games played (123) played and No 3 in 3-pointers made (183),” the statement read. “He averaged 7.4 points, 2.2 rebounds, 2.0 assists. He scored 20 or more points five times during his senior season, including a season-high 25 points at North Carolina A&T on Feb. 23, 2015.”
Off the court, Bozeman was known to volunteer in the community, including at Special Olympics events. He also organized a dance for mentally disabled students.
Local residents respond
“Me and my friends would like to come down here but we are intimidated,” said local resident JB, a woman in her 60s, who told WTOP that the open use of marijuana and drinking at clubs at night keeps her away from the H Street area.
Another resident, Peter, said he’s lived in the area for several years and generally feels as safe as anywhere else in the city.
“Nothing good happens if you are alone walking around at 2 a.m. anywhere,” Peter said.
An ‘action plan’ to address gun violence
On Sunday, a statement from the Advisory Neighborhood Commission 6A called on Mayor Bowser’s administration to take steps to reduce crime along the busy H Street Corridor.
“The events that transpired at Cru Lounge are a stark reminder of the immediate need for stronger measures to combat violence in our neighborhoods,” the statement read.
“We are calling on the Bowser Administration to match their words about gun violence with an action plan to address it with urgency. We also ask the owners and operators of Cru Lounge to immediately review their security plan to understand how they allowed a weapon to be inside their establishment and to make the necessary changes immediately,” they added.
D.C. police describe the suspect in Saturday’s shooting as a Black male, approximately 5-foot-7, wearing a white/cream sweater and a black hat. He was last seen headed west on H Street.
Anyone with information is asked to call police at 202-727-9099 or text anonymously to 50411.
WTOP’s Shayna Estulin, Mike Murillo, Jessica Kronzer and Dana Sukontarak contributed to this report.
