Who was Maurice Jackson? DC surpasses 200 homicides as teen shot dead near Northwest school
Warning: This article contains a recollection of crime and can be triggering to some, readers’ discretion advised.
WASHINGTON, DC: Following the shooting death of Maurice Jackson, 16, a student of Dunbar High School with interests in entrepreneurship and architecture, in Northwest Washington, DC, on Tuesday, September 26, police reported that more than 200 people have been killed in the district this year.
The terrible event was revealed at a news conference when officials presented an update on the shooting that killed Maurice Jackson, 16, in Northwest and details on another firearm-related death that took place an hour later in Southeast Washington, DC.
As per authorities, the shooting incident that killed Jackson was reported at 3.46 pm, and the caller reported hearing shots in the 1500 block of 4th Street, NW.
Subsequently, a teenager with gunshot wounds was discovered at the junction of New Jersey Ave, NW, and P St, NW, as reported by FOX 5 DC.
Maurice Jackson was shot while fighting with another group of teenagers
Maurice Jackson, 16, was one of two individuals killed in shootings on Tuesday that occurred 62 minutes and six miles apart, making the number of homicides in DC reach 200, making it the most at the earliest point in any year since 1997.
As classes ended earlier that afternoon, Jackson, a Junior, contacted his mother, Brittany Malloy. She reportedly said, "He told me he was on his way home," as per The Washington Post.
Malloy, a 32-year-old nurse and cosmetologist, claimed she received another call from a friend after learning that her only son had been shot two blocks from the Dunbar High School's entrance.
Officials said that the victim was a member of a group that was fighting with another set of individuals.
According to Police Chief Pamela Smith, one from that group pulled a firearm and shot repeatedly, striking the teenager in the chest. The suspects, per the police, are also teenagers.
In footage retrieved by the authorities, Jackson can be seen stumbling into the junction and pleading with a crossing guard for help.
Sadly, he died at a hospital after some time, leaving another mother in the nation's capital tortured as she simultaneously grieved the loss of a child.
Malloy felt outraged over the ongoing violence, questioned the city's policies, and pondered how illegal firearms could be so prevalent on the streets of the capital.
In connection with the incident, police say they're looking for two persons. According to authorities, one person was clad in a black sweatshirt and jeans, and the other in a gray hoodie and black and red sneakers.
Another man was gunned down on Savannah Street an hour after Maurice Jackson's incident
According to police, Kamal Jones, 21, of Southeast, was shot and killed as he stood by two vehicles that opened fire on one another on Savannah Street in the Congress Heights area.
The 1300 block of Savannah Street, Southeast, reported a complaint of a shooting at 4.47 pm, about an hour after Maurice Jackson's incident. Officers arrived and found Jones wounded from multiple gunshot wounds, and he was declared dead on the spot.
Homicides are up by 28% in DC compared to 2022
With Maurice Jackson's death, DC has now seen more than 200 homicides this year, according to police. Police Chief Pamela Smith later declared that eight more deaths had been determined to be homicides, increasing the total to 209.
The District of Columbia has now recorded 200 homicides earlier than any time since 1997, a 28% increase from this time in 2022. A total of 155 homicides had been reported by the date of the incident last year, as per NBC Washington.
This year, the first reported homicide was of a 17-year-old Dunbar High School student, who was fatally shot in January near the Congress Heights Metro station in Southeast DC.
It's a shocking new figure, and according to Smith, the solution lies in getting firearms off the streets and encouraging locals to speak up when crimes are perpetrated in their areas.
Smith added, "We are sick and tired of the gun violence in this city. We need to have family members, parents, brothers, sisters really come forward and share with us these things that are happening, specifically relating to guns."