A look at the surge in youth gun violence in the Pittsburgh area
PITTSBURGH (KDKA) -- In the past year, dozens of local teenagers have lost their lives to youth gun violence.
Now, in a three-part KDKA Investigates series called "Our Kids Are Dying", KDKA-TV is taking a look at the reasons behind the surge, the devastating heartbreak it's causing families and the possible solutions.
Up first, the surge.
When gunfire broke out in a crowded Airbnb in Pittsburgh's East Allegheny neighborhood on Easter Sunday, two teenagers were killed and nine others were wounded.
But that was only the latest and most horrifying incident in a trend of youth gun violence, which has claimed the lives of scores of local young people over the past two years.
Last year, homicides claimed the lives of 28 teenagers in Allegheny County. And of the 38 homicides so far this year, 11 victims have been between the ages of 11 and 20.
Police say most of the killers are kids with easy access to guns.
"Where are kids are getting these Glocks, Tech9s and AK-47s at 14 and 15 years old?" said Street Outreach Coordinator Richard Garland.
Garland is a former gang member who came to Pittsburgh during the gang wars of the early 1990s. Today, he said the victims are even younger and he blames the pandemic.
"You can't forget that we've been locked down for a while," Garland said. "And to me, social media has been the most horrible thing."
Garland said it's become almost like a weapon for at-risk kids who have spent a rudderless past two years in isolation and anxiety.
The gangs are gone but cliques and crews are still being formed online, tracking one another on social media, trading insults, fermenting rivalries, plotting revenge and acting out.
"There's a lot of different beefs on social media that we can track down right to some of the things that make kids do some of the things that they're doing," said Garland.
Add to that the availability of guns and the combination has turned deadly.
Allegheny County Police Assistant Superintendent Victor Joseph said, "Illegal guns are out there. Whether they're taken from burglaries, thefts from cars or traded for drugs."
The Allegheny County Police Department and the Pittsburgh Bureau of Police are working with the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives to try to stem the flow of illegal guns and keep them out of the hands of young people.
Meanwhile, in Harrisburg, gun control advocates are now proposing gun locks and gun safes, as well as requiring owners to file a report when guns are stolen.
"Simple legislation that requires the reporting of lost or stolen firearms is a way to reduce that level of gun trafficking," said Josh Fleitman with CeaseFirePA.
However, gun rights advocates say more gun laws will do nothing to reduce the availability of illegal guns or their use in violent crime.
"They're all obtained illegally when they're used in these events, and a 16-year-old is not allowed to have a gun in the first place," said Jim Stoker with Firearms Owners Against Crime.
But for now, Garland says guns are out there for the asking.
"I can get a gun before I can get a meal," he said.
