‘He just started living’: Family, community mourn 3-year-old killed in drive-by shooting
Angel Figueroa stood in front of his bullet-riddled home clutching, and not letting go of, the balloon honoring his slain 3-year-old son Wednesday night.
“I feel so hopeless,” Figueroa screeched.
Tuesday around 11:45 p.m., Asiah Figueroa was killed in his sleep as shooters in two cars fired 150 rounds into his family’s northwest Charlotte home, striking the child in the head. Eleven people were in the home at the time, including Asiah’s 4-year-old sister, Charlotte-Mecklenburg police said.
Wednesday night, Asiah’s family, neighbors and community leaders gathered outside of the home in the 2400 block of Richard Rozzelle Drive for a balloon release and memorial service.
“Enough is enough,” Will Adams of the anti-violence nonprofit Team Trublue said during the memorial. “I’m tired of turning on the news and looking on social media and all you see is death. You see bloodshed in our streets.”
Corine Mack, president of the NAACP’s Charlotte-Mecklenburg chapter, said the community failed the Figueroa family because of what happened to Asiah.
“We all failed,” she said.
Asiah “was a prince” who’s gone too soon because of senseless gun violence, family friend Andrea Walker said.
“Charlotte is tearing apart,” said Walker, who organized the event. “We got to do better. We have to take responsibility for our children’s actions and try to give them as much structure as possible.”
According to CMPD, Tuesday’s drive-by shooting, the fatal shooting Sunday of a teenager and other recent gunshot attacks on Charlotte homes are all believed to be related to disputes among students at Hopewell, North Mecklenburg and Chambers high schools.
“The school system needs to do better,” said Gemini Boyd, co-founder and president of nonprofit Project B.O.L.T.
Boyd said Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools should hire more counselors so they’re able to have more conversations with students to avoid situations where guns are drawn and innocent people are killed.
“We need mentors in them schools,” he said.
Once the balloons were released in the air, cars lined up down the street and flashed their lights as a show of respect for Asiah and his family.
“This is gut wrenching,” community advocate Leondra Garrett said. “It’s just hard to even fathom a 3-year-old laying down going to sleep and not even knowing or seeing what’s coming. He just started living.”
This story was originally published September 9, 2021 at 11:46 AM.