A family Easter gathering at Russell Square Park on Vine Street in Denver turned deadly on April 5, 2026. Around 6:00 p.m. a gunfire exchange erupted that involved at least one person in a passing vehicle and at least one person at the gathering. Forty-three-year-old Sharon Ware was struck and taken from the 3600 block of Vine Street to Denver Health Medical Center, where she was pronounced dead; the Denver Office of the Medical Examiner confirmed a gunshot wound and ruled the manner of death a homicide. Eighteen-year-old Pharrow Ware also died of injuries sustained in the incident a week later.

Investigators identified a 34-year-old man who had been at the family event as the person who allegedly shot Sharon Ware, but the Denver District Attorney’s Office declined to file homicide charges, saying there was no reasonable likelihood of conviction. Authorities recovered a stolen vehicle believed to have been involved about four hours after the shooting; no arrests have been announced and the identities of the vehicle’s occupants and the motive remain under investigation.

If anyone at the park that evening or anyone with information about the abandoned vehicle can help, please share what you know.