According to a Washington State Patrol report, the Beyond Wonderland shooter, James M. Kelly, was on a bad mushroom trip on psilocybin mushrooms and was convinced the world was ending. Kelly is a soldier at Joint Base Lewis-McCHord, a joint Army and Air Force base south of Tacoma, Washington.
Kelly attended the show with his girlfriend Lily Luksich, 20. Sgt. David Kiehl wrote.
As Kelly’s hallucination ‘trip’ got going, he began to believe that the world was ending and that he needed to return to his camp immediately with Luksich, Kelly and Luksich hurried back to their campsite. During that time, Luksich said Kelly made multiple statements to the effect of ‘this is the end.’
At this point, Kelly retrieved from a locked box in the center of his truck console a handgun which he loaded. After this Kelly encountered Josilyn Ruiz, 26, and her fiance Brandy P. Escamilla, 29 and shot several times, killing both.
Andrew J. Cuadra, 31, after hearing the shots moved toward them. Kelly then ‘allegedly’ fired at least one shot, hitting the Cuadra in the shoulder.
After this Kelly started walking through the campground. Kuksich tried calling 911 but Kelly grabbed her cellphone as she was talking to the dispacther.
Employees of Crowd Management Services responding to the gunfire encountered Kelly. Kelly then fired several times, with one bullet hitting employee Lori Williams. The bullet went through William’s glasses and grazed her face.
At this point the couple was in the farm next to the campgrounds. Kelly then fired shots at a drone flying over them. Kiehl noted wrote:
At one point, Luksich began to walk north, away from Kelly, turned around with her hands raised in the air and walked back to Kelly.
Kelly then shot Kuksich in the foot and in the upper leg, with the 2nd shot causing life-threatening injuries which may become permanent.
At this point police found the couple and Detective Edgar Salazar of the Moses Lake Police Department shot Kelly. He was treated for his wounds and then arrested. Kelly currently remains in custody and is under investigation for two counts of first-degree murder, two counts of first-degree assault, and one count of first-degree assault, domestic violence.
GoFundMe fundraisers have been listed online for the victims:
The most recent update per the Grant County Sheriff’s Office is below:
OFFICER-INVOLVED SHOOTING INVESTIGATION**UPDATE**
On 6/17/2023 at approximately 8:25 PM, law enforcement received reports of shots being fired in a campground near the Gorge Amphitheatre near George, WA. During the law enforcement response, an officer-involved shooting incident occurred. The North Central Washington Special Investigations Unit (NCW SIU) was requested and responded to assist with the investigation. At this time, the NCW SIU is handling the investigation of the preceding events and the officer-involved shooting.
The suspect in the shootings has been identified as 26-year-old James M. Kelly, an active duty member of the US Army based out of Joint Base Lewis McCord. Through investigation, NCW SIU has determined the initial shooting event occurred within a campground near the Gorge Amphitheatre, which was hosting the Wonderland music festival.
During this portion of the shooting, 29-year-old Brandy P. Escamilla and 26-year-old Josilyn S. Ruiz both of Seattle, WA, were walking through the campground and were shot and killed. A third victim, 31-year-old Andrew J. Caudra AKA “August Morningstar” of Eugene, OR, was shot one time in the left shoulder and received medical treatment at Harborview Medical Center in Seattle, WA. He is in stable condition but it is unknown if he has been released.
A fourth victim, 61-year-old Lori Williams, who was working with Crowd Management Services, responded to the area of the shots fired in a Polaris Ranger UTV. During her response she encountered the suspect who shot in her direction multiple times. Williams was struck by a single bullet that penetrated the windshield and struck her in the right side of her face shattering her glasses and causing bruising and lacerations. Williams was treated and later released at the scene.
A fifth victim, 20-year-old Lily A. Luksich of Millcreek, WA., attended the concert with Kelly. Luksich sustained two gunshot wounds to her lower extremities. Luksich was treated and has been released from Samaritan Hospital in Moses Lake.
Following the above-described events, officers located Kelly and Luksich in an agricultural field adjacent to the campground. Moses Lake Police Department Detective Edgar Salazar fired his duty weapon at Kelly striking him one time. Responding officers then quickly moved in and Kelly was taken into custody and received emergency medical aid from the officers. Officers also applied emergency medical aid to Luksich for her injuries. Kelly was transported to Sacred Heart Medical Center in Spokane, WA. and has been treated and discharged. Kelly has been booked into Grant County Jail.
Detective Salazar is 35-years-old and has been employed with the Moses Lake Police Department since 2015. Detective Salazar is currently assigned to the Street Crimes Unit and is a firearms instructor. At the time of the shooting, Detective Salazar was working in an undercover capacity at the festival. Prior to his employment at Moses Lake Police Department, Salazar served in the United States Marine Corps.
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Captain Brian Chance
Wenatchee Police Department
NCW SIU, PIO
(509) 888-4203
