Police: 8 shot in Texas Southern drive-by attack

AP – Police tape marks the spot where at least 5 people were shot Wednesday, July 22, 2009 none fatally, at …
Thu Jul 23, 6:52 pm ET
HOUSTON – Houston police on Thursday increased to eight the injury toll from a drive-by shooting at a community rally on the Texas Southern University campus.
University officials initially said six people were wounded when gunfire broke out as the "family block party" event was ending about 8:30 p.m. Wednesday.
Houston Police spokesman Kese Smith said Thursday that eight people ranging in age from 14 to 21 were hospitalized with non-life-threatening injuries after the shooting. At least one of the victims was a student at the Houston school, university officials said.
Smith said Houston police are looking for several suspects, but downplayed a possible gang connection, saying investigators did not know a motive. Campus police had raised the possibility of a gang rivalry shortly after the shooting.
The rally featured a voter registration drive, HIV testing and appearances by Houston rapper Trae the Truth, Houston City Councilman Peter Brown and U.S. Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee.
Witnesses said people dropped to the pavement as shots rang out in the parking lot where the rally was being held.
A statement on Texas Southern's Web site called the shooting "a bad ending to a successful family-oriented event. The TSU campus remains safe and is open for normal business and classes."
Texas Southern is a historically black university with an enrollment of around 10,000 students.