Mall of America shooter sentenced for firing inside Nike store after dispute
BLOOMINGTON, Minn. (FOX 9) - A man has been sentenced for his role in the 2022 shooting inside the Nike store at the Mall of America that happened following a dispute that began at the checkout register.
Shamar Alon Ramon Lark, 21, was charged with second-degree assault with a dangerous weapon, intentional discharge of a firearm that endangers safety and carrying a pistol in public without a permit. He pleaded guilty to second-degree assault with a dangerous weapon in exchange for the other two charges being dropped.
On Tuesday, July 26, he was sentenced to three years in prison, a guideline sentence for assault that prosecutors had pursued. During the sentencing, state prosecutors said they did not believe Lark was amenable to probation due to his criminal history and previous possession of firearms.
"Mr. Lark was a victim of a vicious attack … They attempted to flee, and their attackers continued to pursue them. It was only then that they turned back," said Lark’s defense attorney Bruce Rivers prior to sentencing. "They were misidentified as gang members by the other party, and this is a situation where he acted quickly, and was in perfect self-defense … He thought he was in fear for his life, and that is where his head was at."
Rivers had requested a downward departure in sentencing from Judge Kerry W. Meyer.
Prior to sentencing, Lark shared prepared remarks, in part saying, "A few words I can use to describe myself is reserved, compassionate, and accountable. I’m a person that people can get along with … The day of the incident I was really scared. I didn’t know where to turn, and it was a fight-or-flight moment. As you see in the video they attacked us while shopping. The decisions I made I look back at and see that it really changed me. I’m not a bad person, I was scared for my life."
Nike store shooting
On Aug. 4, 2022, a fight broke out between six people inside a Nike store in the front of the checkout area around 4:15 p.m. Two men were seen leaving the store briefly, then Lark returned and fired a handgun several times toward the others involved in the fight. There were people and children inside the store at the time.
No one was injured in the shooting, but the mall went into lockdown.
In the immediate aftermath, authorities put out an all-points bulletin for the two main suspects, Shamar Lark and Rashad May, who were eventually arrested in Chicago.
May avoided prison time by claiming self-defense during his sentencing in June, pleading guilty to aiding an offender to avoid arrest for helping coordinate the get-away.