2 teenagers recovering after shooting in front of Newark high school
NEWARK, N.J. -- Two teens are recovering after a shooting in front of a Newark high school.
A 17-year-old remains in critical but stable condition.
CBS New York's Christine Sloan spoke to Newark's mayor and organizations to learn more about how they're trying to stop the violence.
The Newark Community Street Team's high risk intervention unit rushed to West Side High School on Tuesday after two teenagers, including a student, were shot outside the school.
"What I did was I told all the kids that was running that way to go to a certain area," team member Isiah Hall said.
Team member Valtrez Diggs, who lost his own brother to violence, spoke to the 15-year-old victim, who's in stable condition.
"I got to respond to the first child and I got to talk to him a bit ... [He said] actually it wasn't meant for him," Diggs said.
The group is among 37 organizations getting funding and working with the city's Office of Violence Prevention to help victims and intervene with those committing crimes.
Team director Rey Chavis' own brothers were killed years ago.
"To let them know like, listen, this is not the way. We have to put down the guns. We have to stop the violence in our community," he said.
Newark's mayor says the city is beefing up security at West Side High.
"They do have some significant leads. They got the weapons off the scene," Mayor Ras J. Baraka said. "One of the kids had an ankle bracelet on, which indicates to us he needs more help and service."
Community activist Donna Jackson says the city needs to do more.
"We don't have enough police bodies to handle this, even though we should be having a partnership with the sheriff's department because South Orange Avenue is a county road," she said.
"I want to tell Donna and all the other residents in the community, we are working very diligently to come up with a school-based violence intervention strategy. We do have individuals inside the schools on the lunch period. We have individuals outside the school," said Lakeesha Eure, with the Office of Violence Prevention and Trauma Recovery.
Where the street team comes in...
"You're not afraid?" Sloan asked team director Smily Jones.
"At times when you're doing work like this and you want to save the community, you can't go in with an afraid heart. You got to go in with a brave heart," Jones said.
