A middle school teenager was shot in front of his home in the Atlanta suburb of Gwinnett County this week.
His parents believe he was killed by other boys who had been threatening him for about three months. They say the other teens were jealous of the 13-year-old boy’s clothes.
A car filled with teenagers who were allegedly Jaeden Travis’ rivals, drove by his father’s house on Valentine’s Day. They dared him to come out for a “BB gun war,” according to Harold Travis. His son grabbed his BB gun and ran outside to confront the group, ignoring his dad’s warning.
“When I saw him running, I came out the house running. By the time I got in the middle of the street, pop, pop, pop, my son went down and said dad, I’m shot,” Travis said in an interview with WSB-TV 2.
Officers took the boy to a hospital, where he later died.
According to the boy’s mother, this fatal altercation was not the first time the teen and his friends had come to their house to start trouble.
“They came over here, they jumped him one time. I had to jump in the fight because that’s my baby, it’s just senseless,” said Jaqueitta Milerson, Jaeden’s mother.
“They were calling, sending threats, pulling up to my house,” Milerson said. “They’re sending pictures of guns, you know, threatening to actually kill him.”
After this incident, the mother said she filed a police report.
“He was very loving and very helpful. He was just like an old soul,” Milerson said. “It takes a village to raise these kids. It’s so many kids out here that’s lost.”
Jaeden was an outdoorsy type of kid, who loved to go fishing, horseback riding, and hunting, and rocked an afro hairstyle. His mom says, “ he was a daddy’s boy, and he didn’t play about his mama.”
According to the father, the boys set up his son to be killed, and “destroyed” his life.
“I won’t be able to go fishing with my son no more. We had a bond like no other, you know. They just destroyed my life when they took my son and shot him,” the father said.
Gwinnett County Police Department Homicide and Crimes Scene Investigations Units have launched an investigation of the shooting and are “currently following leads.”
Local station WXIA reports police said Jaeden and the other boys were fighting before he was shot.
Even though the parents say they know who the shooters are, law enforcement has not publicly shared information regarding potential suspects.
Also, according to police, “the motive for this incident is unclear at this time and more information will be released as the investigation continues.”
“They’re just jealous of him, what he would wear, and put him in the chat in social media mess,” Travis told Fox Atlanta 5.
Violence among minors has increased over the past couple of years in the state after mandated COVID-19 restrictions were lifted. In 2021, 42 minors took the life of another person in the state, the Georgia Bureau of Investigations reports.
Detectives working on the case are asking anyone with tips regarding Jaeden’s death to call 770-513-5300. They are also encouraged to anonymously call Crime Stoppers Atlanta at 404-577-8477, text information to 274637, or visit the Crime Stoppers website.
