14-Year-Old Shot In The Head Makes 7th Teen Killed In Baltimore This Year
BALTIMORE (WJZ)—Seven teenagers have been killed across Baltimore City since the beginning of the year, and now the mayor is speaking out saying more will be done to keep kids safe over the summer.
Rochelle Ritchie reports from Edmondson-Westside High School, where a vigil is scheduled for Wednesday.
Michael Mayfield was shot and later died at the hospital. The 17-year-old had a lot to look forward to: graduating high school next month and heading to college in North Carolina.
But last week, Mayfield, a senior at Edmondson-Westside High School and a cadet with the Air Force ROTC, was shot point blank while sitting in a car in the 2300-block of Lyndhurst Avenue.
"This was even more horrendous because of what he went through. His last moments of life, the mere fact that he was just robbed of life," said Edmonson-Westside Principal Karl Perry.
Mayfield is the second student to be murdered in a month, and the eighth cadet killed for Sgt. Tony Fedler.
"I've been here 14 years, and I have lost eight kids to violence," Fedler said.
Seven teenagers have been killed across Baltimore City since the beginning of the year, including just last night, when a 14-old-boy was found shot in the head inside his Cherry Hill home in the 600-block of Roundview Road.
Police say paramedics did all they could to save the life of Najee Thomas, but it was too late.
The trigger of violence is a scary precursor to what could come once summer break begins.
"It's like you take two steps forward and three steps back when you have an incident where you lose a young person," said Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake.
She says they are now taking steps in providing more youth outreach programs in hopes they will work to stop the young bloodshed.
"It is heartbreaking when we have young people that are falling victim to violent crime in the city," Rawlings-Blake said.
Perry says teenagers no longer know the value of human life, and it's time for the adults to re-establish their sense of worth.
"People are starting to think this is how life should be. This is not how life should be," Perry said.
No suspects have been arrested in the case of Mayfield. A $2,000 reward is on the table for anyone with tips that lead to an arrest.
Baltimore City Police have also not named any suspects in the death of the 14-year-old in Cherry Hill.
Anyone with information is asked to call 410-396-2100.
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