One dead after shooting on Church Street in Burlington

According to Burlington police, a man was killed in a shooting on Church Street in Burlington in the early hours of Saturday morning.

Responding to a report of shots fired, police arrived and began performing CPR on the victim, identified as 30-year-old Teville Williams of Stowe, a police news release said. Another officer arrested the suspect, 22-year-old Aaliyah Johnson, and confiscated a .45-caliber handgun.

The police had difficulties treating the victim, who had been shot several times, due to a large group of passers-by, the press release states.

“Officers attempting to render medical aid to the victim were hampered by a large crowd surrounding the officers. This crowd had to be pushed back to secure the scene, where shell casings, bullets and blood evidence were visible,” the press release said.

Williams was taken to the University of Vermont Medical Center, where he was pronounced dead, police said.

An initial investigation revealed that Williams and Johnson had an argument during which Williams allegedly assaulted Johnson, police said. The two were inside Red Square, a bar and nightclub on Church Street, at the time. Red Square staff asked them to leave the bar via separate exits.

“Ms. Johnson exited one door and went to the other to confront Mr. Williams on Church Street,” the press release states. “She then allegedly fired several shots at him.”

In a statement Saturday morning, Burlington Mayor Emma Mulvaney Stanak expressed her condolences and praised the police response.

“Acts of violence like this ripple through our entire community and impact our sense of safety. Burlington is grappling with complex challenges that strain our entire safety system. We are actively working to create a community safety system that interrupts cycles of violence, reduces harm to our community, and puts victims and survivors at the center,” Mulvaney Stanak continued.