BETHLEHEM, Pa. — A man has been charged after he unintentionally shot himself during a fight outside a Bethlehem social club early Saturday morning.
City police responded at about 3:49 a.m. Sept. 20 to the 540 Democratic Club, 540 N. New St., for reports of shots fired and a fight in the parking lot.
The 540 Democratic Club is one of Bethlehem’s longtime neighborhood social clubs, founded in the mid-20th century as a gathering place for local Democrats.
Officers secured the scene and spoke with witnesses. Shortly after, a man arrived at St. Luke’s Hospital–Fountain Hill with a non-life-threatening gunshot wound, police said.
Investigators determined an argument began inside the establishment and escalated outside, where multiple people were assaulted.
Police identified the wounded man as Andre C. Cantave, who they say struck several individuals before pulling out a firearm. They believe Cantave’s injury occurred when he accidentally shot himself.
Cantave faces charges of aggravated assault, possession of a firearm by a prohibited person, possessing instruments of crime, simple assault and reckless endangerment.
A second suspect, Shatika Schaffer, was also charged with simple assault in connection with the incident.
Authorities said there is no ongoing danger to the public.
“All parties are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law,” the Bethlehem Police Department said in a release.
Isabel Hope is a journalist and website designer based in Bethlehem, PA. She graduated with a degree in journalism from The University of Alabama in 2022, where she served as News Editor of the student newspaper. Isabel has lived in the Lehigh Valley for three years and is passionate about reporting for the communities she now calls home.