The sound of fireworks is common this time of year in downtown Denver, so Isaak Rhynes wasn’t afraid when he heard what he thought was the crack-crack-crack of a roll of Black Cats around closing time Sunday morning.

Then he looked outside of the Marquis Theater, where he was making the last of the night’s pizzas.

“I saw a woman go down right in front of me, 60 feet away. I saw a couple of people trip and fall as they were running away. There was a ton of blood on (the) sidewalk,” said Rhynes.

Rhynes watched as an ambulance pulled up to load the bleeding woman. She was among five bystanders who were injured when Denver police shot and wounded an armed man near 20th and Larimer streets.

He said someone was with her who was talking with police. The woman, Rhynes said, was lying at the entrance of a parking lot across the street.

As is the routine every weekend, there were dozens of partiers who spilled out from the sidewalk into the street as they paid for their pizza from a Marquis service window and bought beer from the Larimer Beer Hall nearby.

The shooting happened at 1:34 a.m. Sunday in a parking lot just before last call as bars readied to shut their doors for the night. Jordan Waddy, 21, who Denver police said brandished a gun and “posed a significant threat” to other people in Lower Downtown, was critically wounded and rushed to Denver Health Medical Center.

Police said Waddy pointed a gun at them but did not fire it. According to the arrest affidavit, one officer said “he was in fear for his life.”

But it’s the five bystanders, three women and two men, who were injured in the shooting that is getting national attention. Those victims were also taken to Denver Health Medical Center with what police described as “non-life-threatening injuries.”

Denver police did not release more details about the shooting Monday, saying further details would be available Wednesday “after investigators have an opportunity to gather additional information.” Police said they were still conducting interviews and analyzing evidence.

Investigators have not released the names of the officers involved in the incident, and police have placed those officers on administrative leave. It’s unclear whether the officer who wrote the arrest warrant, Eric Bueno, was one of the five on scene. They were on crowd assignment duty, as is the norm when the bars close during the weekend.

Waddy is in the hospital and expected to survive his injuries.

He was charged with menacing and possession of a weapon by a pervious offender. According to the arrest warrant, he tossed his handgun when he was shot. Police recovered a 10 mm Rock Island M1911 A2 from the scene with one round in the chamber and seven more in the magazine. Police said they found a handful of pills that they suspected to be ecstasy in a bag that he was carrying.

Waddy was advised in Denver District Court. He was on probation when he was shot by police.

Colorado court records show that Waddy was charged with several crimes in connection with a Nov. 6, 2017, event in Aurora. Aurora police arrested Waddy on suspicion of aggravated robbery, felony menacing and felony murder, a 2018 district court case shows. Apparently while in custody on those charges, Waddy was charged with assault on a peace officer, obstruction of a peace offer, riot in a detention facility and assault on a guard. All of those charges were dismissed by the district attorney as part of an agreement where Waddy pleaded guilty to two counts of felony aggravated robbery on July 2, 2018.

18th Judicial District Judge Ben Leutwyler sentenced Waddy to 15 years in the Department of Corrections but suspended the sentence — meaning that if he met the terms of probation, the sentence could be dismissed. Leutwyler also sentenced Waddy to five years in the Youthful Offender System.

Waddy was arrested again by Pueblo County sheriff’s deputies in November 2019, in connection with a March 10, 2019, incident. He originally faced a felony charge of assault causing serious bodily injury, but he got another plea agreement and pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor charge of assault on July 14, 2020, court records show.

10th Judicial District Judge Amiel Markenson sentenced him to three years of unsupervised probation and two years in jail, but suspended the jail sentence.

Rhynes said the crime scene was cleaned up Sunday just hours after the shooting. There is violence “pretty much every weekend” since he began working downtown. He finally broke down Sunday after being in a state of shock.

“I watch a lot of dark crime, but you never think it’s going to happen this close to where you are.”

Denver Gazette reporters Julia Cardi and David Mullen contributed to this report.