14-year-old charged with murder in fatal shooting of Bronx 16-year-old
A 14-year-old boy is facing multiple charges in the shooting death of a 16-year-old girl in a Bronx school yard.
The boy was arrested Tuesday and charged with murder, attempted murder, manslaughter and criminal possession of a weapon. His name is not being released due to his age.
Police sources say the NYPD is still looking for a 13-year-old accused of handing the alleged shooter the gun.
Evette Jeffrey struck by stray bullet, killed
Evette Jeffrey's future was cut short Monday when police say a fight between two rival gangs broke out on the playground of the Bronx Latin Intermediate School in Morrisania just after 5 p.m. Video obtained by CBS News shows the brawl.
Investigators say Jeffrey, who went to nearby Morris High School and was affectionately known as "Selena," was riding her scooter in the school yard on Union Avenue when gunshots rang out and one struck her in the head.
"During this altercation, a 14-year-old fired three rounds into the crowd of other teens. The victim was not involved in this dispute. She was an innocent bystander who was trying to take cover behind a brick wall and was struck in the head by one of the rounds," NYPD Chief of Detectives Joseph Kenny said Tuesday.
Police said the 14-year-old has had interactions with the NYPD in the past.
"She said she was going home"
A bouquet was left Tuesday for Jeffrey at the place where police say she was shot. Backpacks were seen strewn all over, where students left them behind as they tried to run to safety amid the gunfire.
Jeffrey's grandmother said she was notified by a neighbor that something had gone very wrong.
"She was banging on the door, and we just ran. When I got there, she was on the stretcher. They were pumping her chest, and I told them, 'I know she's gone,'" the grandmother said.
Jeffrey's friends said they were with her minutes before.
"She said she was going home. I gave her a hug. We parted ways. That was the last time I seen her," one said.
"I saw her. She waved at me. I waved back. She was a nice person, so sweet and what happened? She really didn't deserve that," another said.
"I was with her. We went walking, walked her down the block over there. She said she was going home," another added.
A bright girl who loved her pets and wanted to help others
Jeffrey was her inconsolable mother's only child. Her grandmother said the teen was a sweet girl who loved her cats, dog and turtle, and dreamed of becoming a med tech. She shared a photo of Jeffrey graduating from middle school, adding the teen was full of life and just starting to think about her future.
"She loved music. She had a banner over her bed, teddy bears, you name it, she was a girly girl," her grandmother said. "She wanted to be a med tech. She was already looking into schools that could start her now or wait until she graduates. She's a freshman."
Tears streamed down the cheeks of Jeffrey's aunt, Nereida Abad, on Tuesday.
"Knowing that I'm not going to see her again, knowing I can't hear her voice anymore, I'm going to miss my niece so much," Abad said. "We made it a big point to make sure these kids felt loved and important because we didn't grow up with that."
Friends say what happened to Jeffrey could have happened to any of them.
"We was just talking about how we don't feel safe or nothing. This is crazy. It happened in broad daylight," one friend said.
"I used to go down there a lot. I'm definitely gonna ignore that place now. I'm gonna go all around the block. I'm not gonna go near that place," another said.
"I just hope she rest in peace," another added.
"It's like it gets worse every day, every minute"
Family and friends gathered outside the playground Tuesday evening to honor Jeffrey.
"It's like it gets worse every day, every minute. I'm just thinking about her," mother Kristen Abad said. "They came upstairs and they told me that my daughter was at the park and that she had been shot."
Abad said Jeffrey and her boyfriend were celebrating their anniversary when the shooting happened.
"He did what he could to help my baby," Abad said. "For him to even have to see that and deal with that is, it's messed up, you know? But I'm happy that he was at least there for her, you know? He was there to hold her."
Kristen Abad said she'll continue to honor her daughter's life, a life she says she will never forgive the shooter for taking from her.
"Maybe if there was more activities for kids to do out here, just, they wouldn't be in the street. I don't know. More after-school programs, I don't know. Something could have been done," Abad's boyfriend, Jimmy Lopez, said.
Deadly shooting highlights youth violence concerns
Tuesday, another shooting involving teenagers took place just a mile away. Investigators say rounds fired by two teenagers hit a 20-year-old driver in the arm and shattered glass, injuring his 11-year-old passenger.
Police say so far this year in the Bronx, 28 shooting victims and 17 shooters have been under the age of 18.
Even though the NYPD says shootings are down nearly 20% borough-wide and murders are down 15% compared to this time last year, some community activists say youth violence is rising in the Bronx.
"They're becoming younger and younger. Since 2019, at Jacobi Hospital, we have seen victims under the age of 18 increase and shooting victims," said Pastor Jay Gooding Sr., an NYPD clergy liaison.
Gooding holds several roles fighting gun violence and recently met with the police commissioner to work on solutions.
"We need more centers. We need more after-school programs, employment," he said. "These young people, they're shooting and they're right back on the street the same day."
Gooding says the Bronx currently does have hardworking prevention and crisis teams, but they're overwhelmed.
"We see a reduction in our catchment areas. We see a reduction in the shootings, and that's our purpose," Gooding said.
On Tuesday, several of those groups came to the scene to support students during dismissal.
"We have a lot of programs, especially entrepreneurship, 'cause we know how it's important. We have the men's group. We have the women's group. We have GED. So we have a lot of resources to offer the kids," said Marisol Rivera, with SOS Bronx.
Local leaders say the answers can't come only from City Hall or police headquarters. They say they need the community's help as well.
