Fatal Shooting at Tulsa Church Festival: Catholic Festivals Have Had Multiple Incidents This Year
Another major incident at a Catholic Festival. This is one of many such incidents in the past year at Catholic Festivals.
Tulsa Church Festival Shooting – Incident Overview
A community festival at St. Thomas More Catholic Church in East Tulsa ended in tragedy when a fight between two teenagers escalated to gunfire. Around 9 p.m. on Sunday (July 27, 2025), as the parish event was wrapping up, one teenage boy pulled out a gun during a physical altercation and shot the other. The wounded teen was rushed to a nearby hospital and underwent surgery, but he did not survive his injuries. Tulsa Police have confirmed the victim’s death and are treating the case as a homicide.
Details of the Incident and Investigation
Location and Security: The shooting took place in the parking lot of St. Thomas More Catholic Church, near E. 31st Street and 129th East Avenue in Tulsa. The church had hosted an all-day parish festival attended by a few hundred people, mostly families and parishioners. Organizers had even hired private security to keep the event safe, but police say those security personnel had already left by the time the fight and shooting occurred. Because this was a church-sponsored family event, violence was “unexpected” – “This is definitely not a street party where violence is expected… It’s a family event,” Tulsa Police Captain Joshua Showman emphasized. He described the situation as an “unexpected, tragic” incident that shocked the community and parishioners in attendance.
What Happened: According to investigators, two teenage boys got into a physical fight near the end of the festival. At some point, one of the teens produced a handgun and shot the other in the chest. Officers at the scene provided aid, and the victim was transported by ambulance to a hospital in critical condition. Despite emergency surgery, the teen victim did not survive and was pronounced dead at the hospital. No one else was injured by the gunfire, and no additional victims have been reported.
Suspect and Ongoing Search: The suspected shooter, who is also a juvenile male, fled the scene immediately after the altercation. Police say they have identified the suspect (indicating they know who he is), but his name has not been released publicly due to his age. As of Monday morning July 28, the teen suspect was “still on the run” and not in custody. Captain Showman noted that investigators recovered some evidence the suspect apparently discarded while fleeing the area. Tulsa Police have stressed that they do not believe there is any ongoing threat to the public at large, as the incident seemed to stem from a personal dispute between the two youths involved.
Police officials have publicly urged the suspect to come forward and are actively searching for him with all available resources. There was some initial confusion at the scene – officers detained another young male in handcuffs that night, but investigators later stated that individual was not the primary suspect in the shooting. Detectives are now interviewing witnesses and following leads; however, they report that not all witnesses are cooperating with the investigation. Investigators are also working to determine the relationship between the suspect and victim, which was not immediately clear.
Community Response: Hundreds of people were still on the church grounds when the shooting happened, creating a chaotic scene as police moved in. “There was a very large crowd still here, hundreds of people,” Capt. Showman said, underscoring how much worse the situation could have been in such a crowd if more shots had been fired. Parishioners and residents are described as stunned by the violence at what was supposed to be a fun, family-friendly event. “Obviously this is very shocking for the community and the parish members in attendance,” Showman said of the incident. Tulsa Police have asked anyone with information — no matter how minor it may seem — to contact Crime Stoppers at 918-596-COPS, noting that callers can remain anonymous.
Background on the St. Thomas More Festival
The event in question was the annual Parish Festival hosted by St. Thomas More Catholic Church, a longstanding Catholic parish on Tulsa’s east side. The festival was an all-day affair on Sunday, July 27 (from around 10 AM until 9 PM), featuring food, games, and family activities common to church festivals. Approximately a couple hundred people attended throughout the day, many of them families with children and teens accompanied by parents or caregivers. The atmosphere is typically family-oriented and peaceful, so much so that the hired security staff departed once the event wound down, since trouble was not anticipated on church grounds.
St. Thomas More Church’s festival is one of many summer parish festivals in the region that aim to bring the community together and raise funds for church programs. Tulsa police characterized this festival as a “family event” where violence would not normally be expected. The shooting that occurred was a highly unusual and tragic end to the day. Church officials have not yet made a public statement about the incident as of the latest updates, but it can be assumed that the parish community is cooperating with law enforcement and will be re-evaluating security measures for future events. Parish festivals elsewhere have occasionally encountered issues with unsupervised youths, and unfortunately this Tulsa incident appears to be part of a broader pattern of disturbances at church fairs (though this is the first in Tulsa involving a deadly shooting).
Other Recent Incidents at Catholic Church Festivals
While the violence that struck the Tulsa festival was shocking, similar incidents involving juveniles causing chaos at church festivals have been reported in the past year in other communities. These events, though unrelated, provide context that unruly teen behavior at ostensibly family-friendly church fairs has become an increasing concern in some areas:
Gates Mills, Ohio (June 2025): Police in a Cleveland suburb had to shut down the St. Francis of Assisi parish festival early after “several hundred juveniles” gathered outside once the event reached capacity. The large crowd of teenagers became unruly when they couldn’t get in, and multiple fights broke out in the street. Officers even chased individuals who reportedly brandished guns; one was caught and charged (details not released). An estimated 300–400 teens then moved into a nearby shopping plaza, where more fights and vandalism occurred, prompting responses from multiple police departments. Officers had to deploy pepper-ball rounds to disperse the mob, and several juveniles were arrested amid the chaos. Local authorities described it as a “very difficult situation” that required dozens of officers to restore order.
Lyndhurst, Ohio (Summer 2024): In a similar Cleveland-area incident last year, fights erupted at the St. Clare Catholic Church festival in Lyndhurst involving large groups of teenagers. Nearly a dozen juveniles were arrested after that disturbance, which also saw hundreds of teens spilling out into neighboring areas. The police chief of a nearby city went so far as to call these church festivals “a gathering place for unruly juvenile behavior,” suggesting such events had become “a thing of the past” due to the safety risks. He argued that the fundraising benefit to churches “is not worth risking the safety of the public” given the recurring problems.
Euclid, Ohio (July 2024): At the Ss. Robert and William Parish festival in Euclid, Ohio, teen mobs caused chaos outside the festival grounds, leading to changes in policy. During one night of the festival, large groups of unsupervised teens congregated in the streets, fighting and even blocking traffic, as captured on video. Although the church noted that no major issues occurred inside the event, the external disorder prompted festival organizers to require that all minors be accompanied by an adult chaperone for the remainder of the festival. This measure was implemented to prevent further disruption after what police called a takeover of the area by unruly youth.
Pinellas Park, Florida (Nov 2024): A parish carnival at Sacred Heart Catholic Church in Pinellas Park ended abruptly when a group of juveniles instigated fights, sparking panic with rumors of a weapon. The family-friendly festival descended into chaos as altercations broke out and crowds stampeded after reports of a possible gun sighting (though police never found a firearm). For safety, organizers shut down the event early. Police arrested four juveniles for disorderly conduct related to the melee. In the aftermath, the local police chief criticized the lack of parental supervision and urged parents to take responsibility for their children’s behavior at public events. He pledged to work with church officials on enhanced security measures for future festivals.
These examples underscore a growing trend of disturbances at church fairs and festivals when large numbers of teenagers attend without adult supervision. In multiple cases, what should be wholesome community events have required significant police intervention due to brawls, vandalism, or perceived threats. Some churches have responded by increasing security or enforcing chaperone rules to curb unruly behavior. Organizers note that the vast majority of attendees are families who behave appropriately, and that only a small subset of youth are responsible for the chaos. Nonetheless, law enforcement and church leaders are now reassessing the safety protocols at these events. The tragic shooting in Tulsa – where a teenager lost his life – brings even greater urgency to ensuring that community festivals remain safe environments moving forward.
What Churches Can Learn From This
Catholic parishes need to take a hard look at how they manage security for festivals and public events. The pattern of teen violence and disruption at these gatherings is no longer isolated, it is recurring. One of the clearest failures in the Tulsa shooting was that security left before the event was fully over. That should never happen. Security must be the last to leave, ensuring that all guests have exited and the grounds are secure. Every church event should have a clear start and end time, with defined security coverage that extends beyond cleanup. Additionally, no minor should be allowed on church grounds during events without an adult chaperone. Entry control, visible security presence, radio communications, and coordination with local law enforcement should be standard policy at all high traffic church events.
This is not just about policy. Scripture is clear: those called to lead, pastors, priests, elders, are shepherds, charged with watching over the flock. Acts 20:28 says, “Pay careful attention to yourselves and to all the flock, in which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers.” That includes not just spiritual care, but also physical protection. In John 10:12-13, Jesus warns about the hired hand who abandons the sheep when danger comes. Churches must not take that same approach by underestimating the need for vigilance. When we gather believers, especially families and children, we are responsible for their safety. To ignore that is not just a failure in leadership, it is a failure in stewardship.
Sources:
· News On 6 (KOTV Tulsa) – “Teen dies after shooting at Tulsa church festival: Suspected teen shooter still at large”
· KJRH Tulsa Channel 2 – “Teen dies after shooting at east Tulsa church event”
· KTUL Tulsa Channel 8 – “Teen shot at Tulsa church festival dies at hospital, suspect on the run”
· News 5 Cleveland – “Chaos outside St. Francis festival in Gates Mills spills into Mayfield Heights”
· Tampa Free Press – “Sacred Heart Festival in Pinellas Park cut short after juvenile disturbances lead to chaos”
Teen dies after shooting at Tulsa church festival: Suspected teen shooter still at large
Teen dies after shooting at east Tulsa church event
https://www.kjrh.com/news/local-news/tulsa-police-investigate-shooting-at-event-at-east-tulsa-church
Teen shot at Tulsa church festival dies at hospital, suspect on the run
Chaos outside church festival last weekend spilled into neighboring city
Sacred Heart Festival In Pinellas Park Cut Short After Juvenile Disturbances Lead To Chaos
So sad... Today I read about a lady at a local church (buffalo NY area) that was found unresponsive facedown In the parking lot. Narcan was administered... Not sure what the outcome was...
Apparently if you click enough of these types of stories on Facebook it will show you more of the same... In some ways this could be a sad thing as it surrounds you with bad news). But I am glad to know and pray for them
Why would anybody hold an event “expecting” violence? Of course it should be peaceful. Probably why security left early. How ridiculous is that? Unfortunately, I’ve seen it happen. And it seems there is this trend, as mentioned, that more problems occur during special events that all too often have no security assigned. Once I was told that team members often attend and others are probably carrying. Sure. Let’s see how that works out in a real situation and no plan. And of course, it’s outside. Go figure.
Keep on reporting Keith. I’m convinced it’s helping.