‘I blame the parents’: Teen killed, another wounded in Hinesville park shooting

HINESVILLE, Ga. (WTOC) - An 18-year-old was shot dead and another wounded after 25 to 30 teens gathered at Irene Thomas Park Sunday night, according to Hinesville police.

The teens gathered a little after 10 p.m. when police say gunfire erupted.

Larinda Pacheco, a Hinesville resident, was at the park with her children about 30 minutes before the shooting.

“I was here with my kids, we were riding our bikes, we did a couple of laps like we normally do. About 30 minutes later, I get a notification, because I pay attention to Newsbreak for the safety of our kids the community; and two people shot and it was very concerning. I was even skeptical on even coming back,” Pacheco said.

Pacheco said more needs to change, but she does not put that on teens alone.

“I don’t blame the teenagers, I don’t blame the kids, I honestly blame the parents. They need to be more involved in their kids lives, and it would really prevent a lot of shootings and just teen violence,” she said.

Police say Officer Jeff Luie performed CPR until medics arrived, but the teen boy died later at a Hinesville medical center.

Investigators have not said whether the teens involved were from Hinesville.

For some teens at the park Monday, the fear is now part of the routine.

“I feel like us coming to the park is even scarier because we don’t know what’s going to happen,” said Keira Lee.

“And the fact that the park is even open after that is crazy,” said Nakeya Wells.

Pacheco is calling on the community to do better to prevent something like this from happening again.

“Our young generation, what are they going to grow up knowing violence? It’s not fair to them, it’s not fair to us. Think of it as if it was your child,” Pacheco said.