Tag Archives: Afterhours Club Tacoma

5th Tacoma Homicide of 2021: Terrance Paige

Posted on December 20, 2021 | Leave a comment

In the early morning hours of February 6, 2021, Terrance Paige was hanging out with his brother and two friends at the Gatekeepers after-hours club in the 3600 block of McKinley Avenue located on the second floor of the building. There were about fifty people inside. At around 2:00am Terrance got into an argument with a 21-year-old man. Terrance’s brother and his friend decided to leave. As they left, Terrance said something to the man and the man pulled out a gun and opened fire. He shot Terrance and three other individuals. Paramedics found Terrance at the bottom of the stairs, performed CPR, but were unable to revive him. Terrance is the fifth Tacoma homicide of 2021.

The man responsible for the shooting was arrested in March of 2021.

After-hours clubs have been a problem in Tacoma for years and a frequent location for homicides. The Gatekeepers Club had been warned repeatedly to shut down as they had no license to operate, but the owner ignored these requests.

I was unable to find out much about Terrance’s life. This is often the case when someone has a common name or a small online presence. This is one of the reasons that the comments section exists and is moderated and reserved for family and friends of Terrance to share thoughts and memories about him.

  • Jack Cameron

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Posted in 2021 Homicides, Tacoma Crime, Tacoma Homicides

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Second Tacoma Homicide of 2019: Steven Dedeaux Jr

Posted on January 18, 2019 | 2 comments

Steven Dedeaux

Steven Dedeaux Jr began his 31st and final birthday at an after hours club in the 3800 block of South Yakima Avenue. The club had two armed guards. They patted down everyone as they came in. Steven was inside the club and armed. Some patrons were allowed to carry weapons, but if the bouncers did not know them, weapons were not allowed.

Around 3:30am Steven noticed that someone he knew was having trouble at the door. The security guards were detaining him after finding a weapon on him. They had gotten one of his wrists in handcuffs when Steven yelled at them to let the man go. When they didn’t, Steven drew his gun and pointed it at them threatening to shoot if they did not let the man go. Instead the security guards opened fire, shooting Steven. One of the security guards was shot in the hand. The man in one cuff ran off.

Steven was taken to St. Joseph’s Hospital where he was later died becoming the second homicide victim this year.

This was not the first incident at this after-hours motorcycle club. Michael Ward Jr. was killed here back in 2014.

Unfortunately I was not able to find very much information on Steven Dedeaux Jr. This is often the case with homicide victims and one of the reasons that the comments section is moderated and reserved for those who knew the victim and want to share thoughts or memories of him.

– Jack Cameron

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Posted in 2019 Homicides, Tacoma Homicides

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Fourteenth Tacoma Homicide of 2016: Tyrell Stokes

Posted on November 1, 2016 | Leave a comment

tyrell-stokes

29-year-old Tyrell Stokes was one of over 50 people who attended a party at an afterhours private club at 5224 South Tacoma Way on Saturday, October 22nd. A little before 2am on Sunday the 23rd, the rapper who was celebrating a recent record deal hit the stage. At 2:08am police heard between 20-30 gunshots. They responded to the scene and found many of the patrons fighting with each other and with first responders. Tyrell was still inside the club. He was shot. Outside, his brother and another man were also shot. They were all taken to St. Joseph’s Hospital where Tyrell died of his wounds two hours later. His brother and the other victim are expected to survive.

This is Tacoma’s fourteenth homicide this year. It’s also the fourth homicide in less than a month and the third unsolved homicide in less than a month. There was also a shooting at the Safeway on South 72nd and Portland Avenue a few weeks ago that left a man in critical condition. While this recent increase in violence is concerning, it is not all that unusual. It’s easy to see patterns where there is only coincidence. However, given the number of recent unsolved shootings, it’s difficult to say what might be causing this uptick.

Despite over 50 witnesses, Tacoma Police have had difficulty getting information due to many of the witnesses being inconsistent or uncooperative. Crime Stoppers is offering up to $1000 reward for information leading to the conviction of the person responsible for this triple shooting. You can call them and remain anonymous at 1-800-222-TIPS.

As always, the comments section is moderated and reserved for those who knew Tyrell and want to share memories of him.

– Jack Cameron

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