NEWPORT NEWS, Virginia — A 15-year-old boy was killed in a shooting in the 1200 block of 16th Street near Garden Dr. in Newport News early Tuesday morning, according to Newport News police.
“It’s sad,” said Newport News resident Shirley Holley.
“Sad” was a commonly used word among people in the 1200 block of 16th Street Tuesday morning as the street was crowded with police tape and vehicles.
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Holley said she is a mother herself and can imagine how the teenager’s mother must feel.
“I know she’s upset and hurt. Sending her child to school knowing she’ll never see him again is sad,” Holley said.
The shooting occurred just before 6:30 a.m. According to police, the teenager was taken to a local hospital where he succumbed to his injuries.
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At around 9:30 a.m., Newport News Police Chief Steve Drew said investigators would continue to work the scene for a while. He became emotional as he said the teen’s next of kin had been notified of her loss.
“What breaks my heart is that so many children are walking to school today. That’s really weighing on my mind right now,” Drew explained. “I saw police officers walking a few blocks with children and talking to them. That’s a tragedy today.”
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He urged the public to come forward if they had seen or known anything, stressing that no information was too insignificant.
“If there’s anyone in this community, anyone who heard or saw anything — those are pieces of a puzzle. I would like to get all the information out there,” Drew said. “It might not be anything, but I would rather be able to look at it and investigate it and put it to one side than have someone think they heard or saw something and not tell us. And that could be the piece of the puzzle we need.”
Police initially went to the area to investigate a gunshot detection alarm.
Shot spotters are towers that the police set up to detect gunshots.
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When officers arrived at the scene, they found a 15-year-old boy shot dead, according to police.
“It touched me deeply because it’s about a young child who goes to school and didn’t make it to school. His life was taken,” Holley said.
Newport News Mayor Phillip Jones released a statement expressing condolences to the boy’s family.
“Today, our community was struck by a senseless tragedy. A young boy’s life was cut short and my heart aches for his family and loved ones during this unimaginable time. Words cannot fully express the sadness we feel. I am grateful for the tireless efforts of our law enforcement officers who are working tirelessly to find those responsible and ensure justice is served.”
Mayor of Newport News, Phillip Jones
Like Drew, he encourages anyone with information to come forward.
“There is actually some information coming in. We’re going to rely heavily on technology, we’re going to rely heavily on some information that we have,” Drew said.
Holley believes more needs to be done for children to prevent this from happening.
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“They advocate for other things, but not for the youth. They have no way out, so they take to the streets or social media,” Holley said.
Newport News Public Schools also released a statement Tuesday saying the school district would provide a support team for students and staff and that the district’s thoughts and prayers were with the teen’s family.
If you have any information about the shooting, please call 911, the non-emergency number 757-247-2500 or the Crime Line at 1-888-LOCK-U-UP.
