‘It's very disturbing;' The initiative to stop teen gun violence and deaths

Yahoo

12-05-2025

The number of teens using guns to commit crimes is skyrocketing in the Miami Valley. Teens are also being victimized by gun crimes at alarming rates.
News Center 7's Mike Campbell spent several days looking at the problem and potential solutions for the recent rise in young gun violence.
The numbers are startling, but it's the simple human cost and the loss that the community must stop. The terrible reality is that teen gun violence usually ends with teens either locked up or dead.
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Hollywood often glorifies gun violence involving young people. Movies and television shows usually fail to show the tremendous pain and loss that family members feel when gunfire turns fatal.
The pain was felt when Dayton Police said two teens opened fire on West Fairview Avenue last August. The gunshots missed their intended target, and the bullets claimed the life of 12-year-old Isabella Carlos.
There are so many horrifying examples, such as when 16-year-old Tyron Smith died from an accidental shooting as teens took gun pictures for social media. This happened on Burwood Avenue in December 2024.
Adrien Totty, 17, died after being gunned down 19 days ago at an apartment complex on Midway Avenue. Then, Liziah Burdette, 14, died 48 hours later after being shot and left in a car on Davis Avenue.
Derrick Forward, President of the Dayton NAACP branch, said, 'It's very disturbing. It's very heartbreaking to see this happening on a day-in, day-out basis,'
Foward said young people must see possibilities, not hopelessness.
'Death and destruction and teddy bears on poles, that is not the life the Lord intended for us to have,' said Foward.
The concern is not just having young people victimized by crime, but young people committing crimes. Two 17-year-olds were charged with murder in adult court after being transferred following a violent shooting that killed a 23-year-old man.
Eric Shafer, Administrator of Montgomery County Juvenile Court, said, 'I wouldn't say that it's exploding in numbers, but I would say it's trending up a little bit.'
Shafer said he knows teens must be held accountable, but there's still a lot of teaching to do.
'Young people don't know the extent of the damage a weapon can do,' Shafer said.
An example of that took place a few days ago when an argument over a dog bite erupted into a shootout. Neighbors ducked for cover as three young people opened fire.
One Dayton resident, who did not want to be identified, said, 'I'm just seeing chaos. It was like the OK Corral out there,'
Dayton Police said they arrested three young men, aged 21, 18, and 17, for firing weapons.
Dayton Police Assistant Chief Eric Henderson said, 'We're seeing some of these weapons with switches that make them fully automatic and magazines that hold 30 rounds.'
Henderson went on to say officers have arrested almost 200 teens in the last two years for carrying weapons. In 2020, it was just 24, and that led to more teen victims, too.
Ten people under 18 were homicide victims in 2024, and already four more this year.
Police are turning to technology to stop the violence; license plate readers and flock cameras are helping.
Police are not just using license plate readers. They are adding to the camera coverage downtown, trying to monitor things with electronic eyes to stop trouble before it happens. Or solve crimes faster when they do happen.
Dayton Public Schools Superintendent Dr. David Lawrence said, 'I know for a fact that parents and kids, when you ask them about school, their No. 1 priority is safety.'
He continued by saying that young people with bright futures economically lead to a safer community.
'When you have hope, you don't pull the trigger. When you have hope, you don't think about doing violent things,' Lawrence said.
It's clear that the community must convince young people that books and backpacks are the paths to success, not guns and gurneys.
One thing that all the people that News Center 7 spoke with agree that teens can get their hands on guns too easily, and that social media plays a big role.
Authorities urge anyone who knows someone who posts pictures with weapons to reach out to that person.
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