Louisville skate park regular says it's a family-friendly place, despite gun-related arrests

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- A frequent visitor of Louisville's skate park is sounding off after two teens were arrested there over the weekend.

Police said Cory Baxter and Tyler McRae, both of whom are 18, were caught concealing AR-style weapons in their waist-bands at the David Armstrong Extreme Park over the weekend.

The park is located between Hancock Street and Franklin Street in Butchertown, not far from downtown Louisville.

Police said McRae had two loaded magazines.

The two teens appeared in court inside Louisville's jail Monday morning, where not-guilty pleas were entered on their behalf on charges of carrying a concealed deadly weapon, among other charges.

"I have very serious concerns based on what is alleged in this citation -- allegations of having AR-15 weapons at a local, public park," said Jefferson District Judge Jessica Moore, during their appearance.

Moore set their bonds at $5,000, each, with the option of being released from jail on house arrest if they post 10%.

Despite the rain, the skate park was still in use Monday morning. Zachary Mullins, a Louisville resident, said he goes there quite a bit, rain or shine.

"Got my surf board because when it rains, this place is awesome," Mullins said.

He said that Louisville is lucky to have a skate park like this one.

"Nothing like this is free, 24/7, open and nice," he said. "Everyone has each other's backs here and everyone is super encouraging."

Mullins said he wants the community to view the skate park as a welcoming, positive place.

"The majority of people who do come here want to skate and have fun here," he said. "It's very nice. I see families here all day long in the morning -- you know, little kids skating and everything."

He said it's at night when more people show up who are not actually there to practice skating.

"There used to be a lot of gatekeepers here who would make sure the people here were skating and stuff, and I don't see too much of that anymore. There's a lot more people coming who aren't skating. That's the thing. If you want to come here and do whatever you're doing, go somewhere else. If you want to come here and skate, come skate and have fun," said Mullins.

The skate park is owned by Metro Government and operated by Metro Parks.

Police said that at about the same time the teens were being apprehended, there was an unrelated incident where someone got into a fight near the Big Four Bridge. That's just around the corner from the skate park.

The Louisville Metro Police Department said sometime around midnight on Sunday morning, an off-duty officer working security at Norton Children's Hospital found a shooting victim there.

LMPD confirmed Monday afternoon that the people who fought by the bridge were involved in the shooting outside the hospital. The victim is expected to survive.

LMPD's new Non-Fatal Shooting Unit is investigating.

There are no known suspects at this time.

Anyone with information is asked to call the LMPD crime tipline at 502-574-LMPD (5673). Anonymous tips can also be sent online through the Crime Tip Portal.

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