Juvenile gun violence on the rise nationally; gun culture 'glorified'

Oct. 23—With statistics showing juvenile gun violence increasing nationally, two Morgan County shootings this month in which two juveniles died and five other teenagers were arrested have elevated community concerns.

Angie Wray said her 13-year-old son is an eighth grader at Austin Junior High and was acquainted with at least one of the juveniles involved in an Oct. 9 fatal shooting in Southeast Decatur. In that incident, Decatur police say, 13- and 14-year-olds planned a robbery in which both the shooter and the teen who was killed were carrying firearms.

"I'm sad about the whole situation," Wray said. "It's scary."

Wray, a Decatur resident whose other child is a 23-year-old nurse in Birmingham, said parents need to be attentive to their children, especially who their friends are and where they spend time together.

"If you don't correct children, they can get influenced by a bad group of kids," she said. "You can lose total control (of children)."

Bruce Jones, former Decatur Youth Services director, said one issue is that juveniles admire firearms but don't consider the consequences of using them.

"They glorify guns, they glorify violence, but in the streets it's reality," Jones said. "You shoot and kill somebody, but this ain't TV or a movie, so that person is dead and you're going to jail.

"That's a reality these young kids don't understand because their brains are still developing."

Wray was one of about 30 parents at a discussion Monday held by Morgan County NAACP President Rodney Gordon to address the issue of juveniles having access to weapons.

"People have to know there are folks that care, and children have to know there are folks that care," Gordon said at the meeting. "There is a problem within our community."

The problem is nationwide. Firearms have become the leading cause of death for Americans ages 1-17, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. The leading cause of deaths among minors previously was motor vehicle crashes, but gun violence started rising in 2016, culminating in juvenile deaths from gun violence rising 13.5% from 2019 to 2020.

Jessica Roche, managing director for the University of Michigan's Institute of Firearm Prevention, said juvenile gun violence continues to rise on a national level.

"It definitely is going up," she said. Data for 2021 is still being completed but "looks like it's trending in the same direction."

She said juvenile deaths are largely driven by homicides, which saw a 33% increase among minors from 2019 to 2020.

Stressors such as the COVID-19 pandemic, changes in education, social isolation and a rise in officer-involved shootings are catalysts for more juveniles seeking out weapons, she said.

And obtaining weapons isn't difficult, according to those who work with youth locally.

Brandon Watkins, Decatur Youth Services' current director, said in his experience juveniles mainly get guns "off the street."

"You can basically buy guns hand-to-hand," he said. "It's a nationwide problem because it's that easy.

"If a kid wants a gun, it doesn't have to be from dad's gun case."

He said in some cases, juveniles can use Cashapp, Venmo and even Bitcoin to purchase weapons.

Jones said, "Guns get stolen, guns get picked up at home, they're everywhere. Why should we be shocked when (juveniles) can get them anywhere?"

Lt. Alan McDearmond, the Hartselle Police Department public information officer, said most of the cases of juveniles acquiring guns he knows of come from auto burglaries.

He encourages gun owners to either leave firearms at home or to lock vehicles when traveling with a firearm.

"I've seen upwards of four or five guns from an auto burglary," he said. "If people would be more responsible with their guns, they wouldn't be getting stolen as easy."

Alabama law prohibits minors from owning or possessing a pistol unless under the supervision of an adult and hunting, target shooting, in a competition, in the military, or on property under the control of a parent or guardian. An exception is also made for a minor who uses a handgun in self-defense against someone intruding into the minor's residence.

Selling or delivering any kind of firearm or deadly weapon to a minor is also illegal.

"The Decatur Police Department takes a zero tolerance approach when juveniles are caught illegally with firearms," said Decatur Police Chief Todd Pinion. "We will prosecute to the fullest extent of the law.

"We encourage responsible firearm ownership and offer free gun locks to our community."

Watkins and Jones said they haven't necessarily seen a rise in gun violence locally but point out that social media has glorified gun culture.

"Especially with teenagers, you see it on your phones and an image is portrayed," Watkins said. "It's a cool fad, a way of life."

Deadly month

The juvenile killed in the Oct. 9 fatal shooting was Avantae "Tae Tae" Alexander, a 14-year-old eighth grader at Austin Junior High, according to family. Decatur police say another 14-year-old, the intended victim in a robbery attempt, fired the fatal shot and was charged with certain persons forbidden to possess a pistol (as a minor). Two 14-year-olds and a 13-year-old who police say planned the robbery were charged with murder and robbery.

A 13-year-old seventh grader from Moulton Junior High School died Oct. 12 after a shooting two days earlier in Trinity. A 16-year-old male was charged as an adult by Trinity police with felony manslaughter in the Trinity shooting. Police haven't identified any of those involved in the two shooting

Public reports show teenagers have been involved in at least eight incidents involving guns in the past year in Morgan County. Three juveniles have died and four have been injured, and at least 10 teens have been arrested in connection with shootings.

Roche said there are efforts underway to curb the nation's juvenile gun violence.

"Storing firearms unloaded and locked with ammunition stored separately is the gold standard," she said.

When a person is going through a crisis, she said it's also important to make sure to remove access to "lethal means." This means removing weapons from houses belonging to family and friends of the person in crisis.

Youth empowerment is also a method to keep juveniles away from firearms.

"We've had youth work on creating community gardens or murals to be a part of something in the community and develop leadership skills and confidence," she said. "We work with (youth) to change behavior and set them up for success."

While youth violence is still on an upward trend nationally, she said funding for research on violence prevention has made positive change possible.

"There's a lot to be hopeful for, but there's a lot more work to be done," she said.

Local efforts

Decatur City Schools has not seen an uptick of juveniles with firearms, according to Elizabeth Gentle, its director of communications.

"If students are found in possession of guns, they are to be expelled," she said. "But we have had no expulsion in the past several years for guns."

DCS has a system on its school-issued computers that looks for keywords of concern, such as references to weapons, profanity or obscenity.

Mental health professionals and counselors are also available for students at DCS, along with several mentor programs, including school resource officers.

DYS also has licensed therapists and 36 programs to keep kids away from firearms and violence, according to Watkins.

"We try to get together to talk about guns and violence and things of that magnitude," he said. "It takes a village to raise a kid."

He said keeping guns away from juveniles is a community effort.

"Everyone needs to come together as a collective to help these kids," he said. "You can be the best parent in the world and kids can make bad decisions."

Wray, a victim of gun violence herself, said she wants to know where the juveniles in the Decatur shooting got their weapons.

"I could not live with myself if I had a gun in my house and my child got hold of it and did something with it," she said. "This is big to me."

— emma.daniel@decaturdaily.com or 256-340-2437. Twitter @DD_EDaniel