Where did the deadly mass shooting at a Stockton birthday party happen?
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- Shooting occurred inside a banquet hall at the 1900 block of Lucile Avenue.
- Gunfire erupted just before 6 p.m. on Nov. 29, 2025, during a child’s birthday party.
- Incident left four dead and 11 injured, officials reported from Stockton.
A mass shooting at a child’s birthday party in Northern California took place inside a banquet hall, authorities reported.
Gunshots rang out at the building in the 1900 block of Lucile Avenue just before 6 p.m., Saturday, Nov. 29, resulting in four deaths and 11 injuries, The Sacramento Bee reported.
Three of those killed were children ages 8, 9 and 14 years old, along with a 21-year-old adult, sheriff’s officials said.
The gunfire took place during a child’s birthday party, Stockton Vice Mayor Jason Lee said in a social media post.
Where did the mass shooting occur?
The shooting reportedly took place during a party inside the Monkey Space banquet hall at 1943 Lucile Ave. near Thornton Road in northern Stockton.
A Dairy Queen and O’Reilly’s Auto Parts store are nearby.
Initial reports of the shooting were confused because some people in the hall ran to the Dairy Queen parking lot and a nearby liquor store to hide, residents reported on Facebook.
Monkey Space is listed as an event venue on Google Maps.
It’s in a space formerly occupied by Kudos Children’s Theatre Company that announced its closure in December 2024 after 21 years and 171 productions.
What to know about Stockton
Stockton is a city of about 320,000 people about a 50-mile drive south from Sacramento and about an 85-mile drive northeast from San Francisco.
In 2024, the Stockton Police Department reported 54 homicides. The community has had one of the higher crime rates in California for many years.
That number fell 34% in the first six months of 2025 to 19 deaths from 29 in the same time period in 2024, Stocktonia reported.
Marla Dunn, 47, was born and raised in Stockton. She lives a mile from the site of the shooting, which she said was “just terrible.” She attends a nearby church.
“We’re all praying for them,” Dunn said. The neighborhood has changed since Dunn was a girl. “There’s more trash, more homeless, but it’s still a good place to live I’d say,” Dunn said.
In general, Bishop Dwight Williams, 60, of New Genesis Outreach Ministries, knows the critical remarks people can make about his city.
“I hear people say all the time, ‘Oh, you’re from Stockton? Oh, my God, you’re from that place,’” Williams said.
He’s quick to defend Stockton.
“Stockton is a great city,” Williams said. “If I didn’t think Stockton was a great city to live, I wouldn’t have stayed here all my life.”
The Bee’s Daniel Lempres contributed to this story.
This story was originally published November 30, 2025 at 12:41 PM.