CHARLOTTE, NC – “It just kinda hit home. Cause somebody I know, another person I know, getting shot,” says Gino Watts. Watts says he doesn’t understand why a group of teens were playing with a gun Saturday afternoon.
Police swarmed McAllister Drive off Beatties Ford Road, after reports of a 14-year-old boy shot near Fred Alexander Park. “Kids shouldn’t play with guns. I mean, it’s dangerous, like people just need to stop the violence, period,” Watts says.
Police have not confirmed the boy’s name but his friends say he attends Turning Point Academy.
Investigators don’t know yet if the teen shot himself or if another teen accidentally shot him.
“Anything can happen within the snap of a finger,” says LJ Thomas. We saw police on the scene for hours, questioning several people. “Why did they have the gun anyway? They don’t need a gun,” says Kris Spencer.
Spencer and other neighbors want to know how the teens got the gun in the first place. “Shouldn’t even touch a gun. Just stay away from guns, really,” he says.
While investigators say the boy was shot in the arm, MEDIC took him to the hospital with life-threatening injuries. Right now, friends are hoping for the best.
“I hope he pull through. You know, I hope he stays strong. Keep him in my prayers,” Thomas says. “I feel for him. Prayers go out to his family and everything,” Watts says.
