Man fatally shot outside Commonwealth Ave. nightspot
Victim is fourth in city in 6 days
In the fourth slaying in the city in six days, a man was shot outside the Paradise rock club early yesterday morning. The victim was carrying a gun at the time, said two police officers briefed on the investigation.
The victim was not identified, and no arrests had been made last night, police officials said in a statement.
Police released very little information about the killing, the fourth of the year in the city. But the management of the club on Commonwealth Avenue near Boston University issued a statement saying that the victim approached the club shortly before 2 a.m. He was denied admission because of the late hour, then employees at the door went back inside the club to prepare for closing, the statement said.
"At that time they noticed that he was causing a disturbance outside, and they called the police," the statement reads. "Sometime thereafter, shots were fired."
The victim was taken to Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, where he was pronounced dead at 2:28 a.m., police said.
Boston University students and Paradise employees lingered outside the club early yesterday evening and talked about the fatal shooting, which happened just yards from several dormitories on a bustling stretch of Commonwealth Avenue near the Brookline-Boston line. A club employee was cleaning the sidewalk in front of the club's marquee, Band members preparing for a gig wandered in and out the club's doors to ready themselves for a sound check. The marquee, lighted with bright gold bulbs, advertised last night's show, Addison Groove Project, a funk and jazz band.
A Boston Police officer ticketing cars near the club was the first to respond to the scene of the slaying, according to one of the officers briefed on the investigation. The citation officer heard several shots and rushed to the club, where he saw the victim lying on the ground with a head wound, the officer said. Several people were assisting the victim, the officer said.
Suzanne Smalley can be reached at ssmalley@globe.com.
