PINELLAS COUNTY, Fla. — Two deadly shootings involving teenagers over the weekend left three people dead and one injured in the Tampa Bay area.
But the numbers point to a bigger issue that shows gun violence among teenagers is up.
The Pinellas County Sheriff’s Department responded to a murder-suicide on Saturday that left a 14-year-old and a 17-year-old dead in St. Petersburg.
Meanwhile, two other teenagers are facing a slew of charges, including first-degree murder, after another shooting in St. Pete.
This all comes after a group of teenagers are facing charges from a shooting at Armature Works earlier this month.
“It was something that showed everyone that gun violence can happen anywhere,” Freddy Barton said.
Barton is the CEO of Safe and Sound Hillsborough, a nonprofit that works with kids facing gun charges. He said 80% of guns that kids get come from unlocked cars.
Firearm owners, Barton said, need to properly lock up and store their guns.
According to Pew Research Center, there has been a continuous spike in injuries among kids since 2014.
In 2020, gun-related injuries surpassed car crashes as the leading cause of death for children, and gun deaths among kids increased by 50% from 2019 to 2021.
A local doctor said he is making it part of his practice to talk about gun safety with his patients.
"I find myself in situations where I have to have really uncomfortable conversations or are challenging to approach or sensitive, and the first step is creating a space where a patient or family member feels safe to talk about things and they don't feel judged,” Dr. Cameron Nereid said.
Barton said parents should be checking their child's backpack and bedroom to make sure they have not gotten ahold of a gun.
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