Update: It took forty-one hours before the first local media outlet mentioned his name after he had been booked and the name was publicly available online. Eventually, one media outlet published a single photo from his arraignment.
At 1:30 am, Sunday morning, a Black male opened fire at The Alleycat Patio & Lounge in Tacoma, Washington.
Five people were shot, and two were killed. Witnesses described the shooter as Black in 911 calls.
However, the Tacoma Police censored the description of the at-large suspect even though he posed a potential severe ongoing threat to the public.
No local media tried to get their own description, even though it would have been easy to do so. The perp was being described on the police scanner. Witnesses are said to have remained at the scene for hours to give statements. There was also a photograph, posted on social media, allegedly showing the perp arguing with someone at the bar before the shooting.
The suspect turned himself in at 4:30 pm Sunday. The Tacoma police then withheld his name in public statements. The local media are also withholding his name, even though it is easily accessible online through the Pierce County inmate search.
At 4.46 pm, the police booked Alante Bryan Peterson, a Black male, for two murders and three assaults.
The fatalities have been confirmed as Monic Lashaye Swan and James Reha.
