Jacksonville, Fla. — In less than a week, police have made a handful of arrests involving teenagers linked to serious and violent crimes, some of which involve murder or attempted murder, according to the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office (JSO).
On Monday, police announced the arrest of D’Andre McCray for the murder of a 16-year-old found shot June 8 on West Beaver Street.
Members of the Jacksonville Fire Rescue Department pronounced the young victim dead at the scene.
McCray is even younger. 15 years old.
[ 15-year-old charged in shooting death of 16-year-old ]
On Tuesday, a 6-year-old was killed after officers say he was shot in the head in Northwest Jacksonville.
A family member identified the little boy as Danny Waye, and told Action News Jax the boy was playing with a gun that was brought to the home by a friend.
According to JSO, a 14-year-old has since been arrested in connection with the child’s death
[ Deadly shooting of 6-year-old Jacksonville boy was accidental, uncle says ]
Around 4 a.m. Wednesday, police responded to a home on Jacksonville’s Northside where a teenage boy was recovering after being stabbed.
Hours later, Action News Jax learned a 15-year-old boy was facing attempted murder charges for a crime dating back to April.
15-year-old Blazier Coleman was arrested for attempted murder in the first degree.
According to the incident report obtained by Action News Jax, officers responded to a person shot in the area of Acme Street and Jasper Avenue back on May 30.
Coleman was arrested this past Monday.
“Every day, it’s always some type of violence that occurs the night before,” a neighbor said.
A neighbor who didn’t want to be identified said he hears gunshots almost every day in that area and the dangerous behavior is partially from the environment kids grow up in and the music they listen to.
“I think music is promoting so much violence and drug dealing and all those things lead to violence,” he said. “The household isn’t solid, isn’t sturdy and it’s not one of those situations to where they have the proper examples and guidance.”
A look at our Action News Jax records shows 14 incidents of children or teens shot so far this year.
Wednesday, a 15-year-old was stabbed at a home on Sibbald road.
Tuesday night, a 6-year-old was shot and killed.
On June 8, a 16-year-old was shot and killed; this past Monday 15-year-old D’Andre McCray was arrested for murder in the second degree. The victim in that murder was just 16-years-old.
The neighbor says the issue needs to be addressed before it’s too late.
“The streets raised me so I understand what they’re going through especially when there’s no parent in the house,” he said. “I just hope we get a grip on it and I hope we come together as adults, sound adults, and do something about it and try to make a change because if we don’t it’s going to get real bad for us.”
Action News Jax has reached out to JSO to see what steps are being taken to ensure the safety of younger adults and children but has not yet heard back.