Jacksonville Sheriff T.K. Waters came out with a strong statement on Wednesday during a news conference after another child was killed by gun violence.
“One murder is one murder too many. But when innocent children are slaughtered as collateral damage to senseless acts of violence, I can’t stay quiet,” Waters said.
On Wednesday, morning a triple shooting claimed the life of a 6-year-old and sent a 12-year-old and a man to the hospital with non-life-threatening injuries.
The shooting came just days after another quadruple shooting killed a 3-year-old and two adults. Since last Friday 6 people have been murdered in Duval County.
RELATED: 3-year-old among 3 dead after 4 people shot on Southside: JSO
As of right now, 90 people have been murdered in Jacksonville this year. And at least 25 children have been shot.
Sheriff Waters is now asking why there is no public outrage about these acts of violence.
Sheriff T. K. Waters said he is heartbroken over innocent children being shot to death.
“There are Jacksonville families who have suffered unimaginable loss the loss of a child. The families are preparing to bury innocent children and that should not happen,” he said.
Last month, community leaders, activists, and ordinary people rallied together in solidarity after a gunman killed three people during what investigators called a racially motivated shooting. But since that incident, there have been a number of deadly shootings that were not followed by organized rallies to protest gun violence, especially gun violence in which children were the victims.
“Why are they not speaking up? We heard from them a few weeks ago. Why are we not hearing from them today?” Waters said.
Nearly an hour after Waters made those comments, the NAACP released a statement.
“The Local Branch of the NAACP is outraged at the overnight killing of a six-year-old child. The senseless violence and shootings in our communities are unnecessary and need to end. The African American leaders should continue to stand in solidarity as they did previously over the recent mass shooting and call out the violence and senseless killings in the black community. The NAACP is strongly speaking out against these atrocities and is demanding a cease-fire,” the NAACP wrote.
Before Sheriff Waters ended his news conference, he spoke directly to the people who committed gun violence.
“I vow to you that this agency will not rest until you are held accountable for your crimes. You took the lives of innocent children,” Waters said. “Our community will not protect you and our community rejects the sub-culture that glorifies the violence that you promote.”
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