LANCASTER, S.C. — The Dixie Youth Baseball League has hosted games at Wylie Park in Lancaster since the 1950s. That's long before the neighborhoods around the park began to decay and long before there was any fear of violent crime spilling over into the action on the field.
That changed this week when two gun-related incidents angered parents and frightened kids who play in the league.
PAST ARTICLE: Kids run for cover after shots fired at youth baseball practice
Channel 9 first reported on Thursday about children and their parents ducking for cover when at least six gunshots were fired across the baseball field where teams were practicing.
"I saw a couple of the parents and kids. They were shaken up, running and ducking," said Ken McKenzie, who lives across the street.
Joy Belk's son was on the field when witnesses said an SUV stopped at the top of a hill behind the field on Roberts Road and someone opened fire.
"Some kids were falling to the ground, others ran into the dugout not knowing what was going on," Belk said.
The night before that incident, a 20-year-old man told police he was walking his dog when he was shot in the leg just outside the fields. The incident happened after 9 p.m. when practice was over, and children and their families were gone.
All league practices were then canceled for Thursday and Friday.
On Friday, Dale Smith told Channel 9 his 14-year-old son, who has played baseball since he was little, isn't sure about playing anymore.
"He's talking to me about wanting to quit," Smith said. "The shooting has gotten him shook up."
Smith was also there Wednesday night. He heard the gunfire and then kids yelling. He wants something done immediately.
"These kids come out because they enjoy the game of baseball. Don't make them look over their shoulders when they're playing the games," Smith said. "I just feel strongly there's not enough safety out here for these kids."
The chairman of the Dixie Youth Baseball League, Larry Small, said Friday the league is looking at adding more lighting in the parking areas, installing security cameras and asking police to increase their patrols.
That last part is already in place for the opening of the season Saturday. Lancaster Sheriff Barry Faile and police Chief Harlean Carter told Channel 9 that they will make sure officers are close by and patrolling the area during games.
"That's where I played baseball when I was a kid," Faile said. "We want to protect those kids and their families."
"We are taking this seriously and we're also trying to develop intelligence about the man who was shot there this week," Carter said.
Both agencies have also talked with board members of Dixie Youth Baseball League, working to come up with a long-term plan to ensure safety at the park.
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