Iowa Wesleyan University administration have weighed in on an incident involving students that occurred Tuesday night. Law enforcement responded to a report of a fight and shots fired near IWU’s campus at the intersection of West Broad and North Jackson Streets in Mount Pleasant. The altercation involved Iowa Wesleyan and Mount Pleasant High School students. A handgun was displayed and shot, striking an 18-year-old, causing minor injuries. Six adults have been charged in the incident. Iowa Wesleyan Vice President for Enrollment, Marketing and Communications Meg Richtman released the following statement this week to KCII. “Something like this happening near campus is alarming and unusual, and having our students involved in some way is certainly inconsistent with the welcoming, safe and inclusive environment we work hard to create at Iowa Wesleyan. We are taking steps to provide safety and comfort to our students who were surprised and upset by the incidents on April 12th. The students who were criminally charged related to this incident will be addressed through our university’s student code of conduct process.”
Richtman goes on to say that the university is fully cooperating with law enforcement and any further questions regarding the incident should be directed to the Mount Pleasant Police Department. Those facing charges include 19-year-old Decobi Davis, formerly of Baton Rouge, Louisiana with reckless use of a firearm resulting in serious injury, a class C felony, and participating in a riot, an aggravated misdemeanor. Nineteen-year-old Joseph McNeese, formerly of Texas and 21-year-old James Williams formerly of Chicago, Illinois were also charged with participating in a riot. Nineteen-year-old De’kunta Mason Jr., formerly of New Orleans, Louisiana, J’cauri Morris formerly of Houston, Texas and 18-year-old Vernell Trent of Mount Pleasant were all charged with disorderly conduct, a simple misdemeanor. Davis and Mason are both members of the Tiger football team.
Four local juveniles were also charged with disorderly conduct.