Posted by
C-Hayes on Saturday, June 30, 2007 5:47:36 PM
First, some quick background on the Liquarry Jefferson murder:
1) an 8-year-old boy was shot and killed by a 7-year-old boy
2) the shooting happened in Dorchester, not the safest Boston neighborhood
3) the shooting happened Sunday night - reports speculate around 11pm
4) the shooting took place in the bedroom of the victim's half-brother, who is 15
5) the gun was illegally possessed
6) the 15 year old is waiting trial for a prior gun charge
So, let's see: how many things do we have going on in this picture? Children killing other children, half-brothers awaiting trial for gun-related charges, children playing with illegal guns at 11pm on a Sunday night, and no adults present.
Unfortunately, this shooting death should come as no surprise.
The Boston Globe provides details of the family's history (though, says the shooting happened in Roxbury in the article, but Dorchester in the caption. Wonder why that is...):
"Amid the sadness, officials and court records painted a picture of a family all too familiar with violence, with Liquarry's father behind bars, his mother with a criminal past, and an older half- brother shot three years ago.
"Liquarry's father, also named Liquarry Jefferson, was sentenced last fall to four years in state prison for a string of armed robberies in various parts of the city, according to court records and a spokesman for the Suffolk district attorney's office. He was convicted of manslaughter in 1998 in the stabbing death of a Boston man.
"The dead boy's mother, Lakeisha Gadson, 30, has four other children. At least one of the fathers has a lengthy criminal history, officials said. Gadson has a record involving multiple assaults, court records show."
Social worker Nia-Sue Mitchum, however, is in fact shocked:
"But social worker Nia-Sue Mitchum of Lena Park Community Development Corporation in Dorchester, where Liquarry attended an afterschool program, said Gadson had been heavily involved in her children's care.
"'It's a beautiful family,' Mitchum said. 'His mother is really struggling hard to take care of all of her kids. She is working so hard to guide her kids.'
"'It's a shock,' she said. 'He's never had any behavioral problems. He's just a wonderful little boy.'"
Sorry, Ms. Mitchum. But this is not a shock. In fact - it's a shock that the boy survived this long in that type of environment.
His father is a murderer. His mother has been in and out of court for years on various assault charges. His half-brother (whose father also presumably has a checkered past, according to the Globe) was awaiting illegal gun possession charges stemming from a 2005 incident - which would presumably put him at 13 or 14 years old. Oh - and he's also been shot.
But where is Tom Menino going to point fingers? At this irresponsible family? Of course not.
Naturally, at the NRA. Oh - and Congress.
Michael Graham unleashes:
"Mayor Tom Menino's reaction to Liquarry's death has proven to every Boston parent that he just doesn't get it. He comforted the so-called 'family' and assaulted the National Rifle Association.
"Blaming the NRA for the death of Liquarry Jefferson is like blaming the American Cutlery Institute for the O.J. Simpson murders. Even the most ardent gun control advocate must admit that, for most of little Liquarry's life, the least of his worries was the state of America's gun laws.
"Liquarry's world consisted of an unwed mother who is also a repeat, violent offender; a convicted killer for a father; a 15-year-old half-brother already busted for gun possession - the son of a convict who recently beat a murder rap; various siblings from sundry fathers; and a community that looked at this dysfunctional mess and thought nothing of it.
"That's the family Mayor Menino visited and offered comfort to. That's the family that social worker Nia Sue Mitchum described as 'beautiful - she's a good mother.'
"If that's a good family, could someone in the mayor's office please tell me what it takes to be a bad one?"
Also - please read why the "Gun Buyback" program doesn't work - and this case is another tragic instance of why.
A cotninued de-emphasis of family will lead to more cases like Liquarry Jefferson. Menino should focus less on gun control and Congress, and more on the building blocks of this case which led to tragedy: disjointed families, lack of parenting, and rampant criminal behavior. Those are the elements that are leading Boston down the road of self-destruction. An emphasis on the importance of the family is a good place to start so that Boston can rebuild itself.