DALLAS, Texas — Dallas police are investigating a shooting that happened during a Halloween party last week at an Airbnb rental.
The home, per neighbors, has worn tempers thin over the last few months.
According to the Dallas Police Department, the party began Friday night and officers were called to the 2900 block of Harbinger Lane in far north Dallas early Saturday when the shots were fired.
Thankfully, no one was seriously injured. A spokesperson for the department did say, however, that someone broke their leg while trying to run away.
Ann Hackett, a neighbor, said she heard at least five shots fired.
"I don't know if they were fired into the air or if they were fired at someone else, I just ran to the back of the house to call 911," Hackett said.
"I've never been that scared to be in my home alone, never."
Hackett told WFAA that another neighbor called Dallas police to report a noise complaint around 11 p.m.
When things didn't cool down, that neighbor went outside around 1 a.m. to confront those hosting the party.
The neighbor recorded that confrontation on her phone. In the video, you can see dozens of people hanging around outside the house.
Toward the end of the video, you can hear two gunshots.
"Any one of us could have been hurt, or worse, if a bullet had come through a wall or window," Hackett said. "One of those kids at the party could have been dead."
Hackett said that the rental gets out of hand every month. The owner of the rental could not be reached for comment about that or the shooting because the listing appears to have been taken down.
The owner also does not live in the home.
"There's no permanent resident living there, so at least two weekends a month there's a wild party," Hackett said. "Friday night got crazy."
Cracking Down on Parties
After Friday night's party, Airbnb CEO Brian Chesky took to Twitter vowing to ban unauthorized Airbnb parties and party houses.
But it wasn't in reaction to the party outside Hackett's home. It was in reaction to a shooting at another Airbnb party on Halloween night in Orinda, Calif. that left five people dead.
No one has been arrested yet.
Chesky went on to tweet that his company would implement a way to screen and flag certain bookings that may be at a higher risk for a large party.
The company is also creating a rapid response team, to take immediate action against renters violating the new guest policies. Violations could lead to removal from a property.
The hope is to stop unauthorized parties before they start.
According to the San Francisco Chronicle, at least 42 people have been shot either "inside or just outside short-term rental properties across the United States over the past six months — and 17 have died."
"We must do better, and we will. This is unacceptable," Chesky wrote.
Chesky also wrote on Twitter that the company would begin verifying all of its listings and would implement a 24/7 hotline so neighbors or renters could call when they experience an issue.
When it comes to the Dallas shooting, Airbnb told WFAA:
“Unauthorized parties break the trust that is foundational to Airbnb, and we are outraged by the reported incident. We stand ready to assist Dallas Police in their investigation and have removed the booking guest from our community.”
Hackett said that she is skeptical, adding that she reached out to Airbnb multiple times to report what happened and got no help.
"How can they oversee what their renters are doing, what their hosts are doing?" Hackett said.
"I don't want anyone to be in danger. This is a good neighborhood, there's no point in it."
More on WFAA:
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- In these North Texas ZIP codes, it pays to have short-term renters
- Nightmare stories from Airbnb neighbors have Dallas considering change