Protest planned near Kansas City neighborhood where teen shot after going to wrong house
Update: A few hundred people turned out for Sunday’s protest. Coverage of the event can be found here.
Community members plan to protest Sunday afternoon after a man allegedly shot a Black teen who came to his home by mistake to pick up his siblings.
On social media, many people have questioned why no arrests have been made after a person in the home allegedly shot the 16-year-old high school student, who was hospitalized and was in stable condition with a life-threatening injury.
According to Kansas City police, the teen was told by a parent to pick up his siblings Thursday at a residence on Northeast 115th Terrace, but he ended up at a home in the 1100 block of Northeast 115th Street by mistake.
Officers arrived to the home around 10 p.m. and found the boy injured. The alleged shooter was brought into a police station to make a statement, but police haven’t released any other information.
Police have not identified the alleged shooter, their race or a motive in the shooting.
A rally organized by The People’s Coalition will start at 3 p.m. at 401 NE Cookingham Drive, two blocks from the residence, to protest violence against Black youth.
“We won’t stand by any longer while racist white vigilantes get away with attempting to lynch and kill our Black children,” the organization wrote on social media. “Kansas City, we are calling a MASS PROTEST in the neighborhood the shooting took place.”
The incident has gained national attention on social media. Shaun King, a writer and activist, said on Instagram that he is working with the family and helped them get pro bono legal representation through civil rights attorneys Lee Merritt and Ben Crump.
“This man must be arrested,” Merritt tweeted. “We are on our way.”
This story was originally published April 16, 2023 at 1:15 PM.
