
                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: SATURDAY, June 16, 1990                   TAG: 9006160263
SECTION: NATIONAL/INTERNATIONAL                    PAGE: A1   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: Associated Press
DATELINE: DETROIT                                LENGTH: Short

SEVEN KILLED AS DETROIT CHEERS TITLE

Rampaging throngs celebrating the Detroit Pistons' second NBA title in as many years turned nasty early Friday. Seven people were killed and hundreds were hurt by gunfire, stabbings and fighting, police said.

Looting and raucous behavior led to dozens of arrests after fans jammed city and suburban streets to mark Detroit's victory.

Four people were killed and one person was injured when a car plowed into pedestrians on the city's east side at 1:15 a.m. Friday. Police later arrested a 41-year-old man.

Two other pedestrians were killed by cars in separate celebration-related accidents. A 21-year-old reveler was killed when he fell from an apartment roof.

In River Rouge, a southern suburb, a 4-year-old boy was struck and killed by a car.

A parking-lot shooting killed a 19-year-old man and critically injured a 25-year-old man at 2:15 a.m., but police said that stemmed from an argument that appeared unrelated to the post-victory outbursts.

Robert Egan, a Mount Carmel Hospital nurse, said fights even broke out in the hospital's emergency room.

"We were running around like crazy. We registered something like 20 gunshot wounds between midnight and 4 a.m.," Egan said. "It was ridiculous. In my three years here, I've never seen anything like this."

Last year, boisterous fans also jammed streets after the Pistons won their first NBA crown. But that celebration was devoid of violence.

by CNB