A 14-year-old boy has been identified as one of the victims in a devastating mass shooting at a child’s birthday party in Stockton, California, on Saturday night. Amari Peterson’s family is grappling with the unimaginable loss.
“No parent should ever have to bury their child,” the family wrote in a GoFundMe set up two days after his death to help cover funeral expenses. “No family should ever go from planning birthdays to planning funerals.”
The shooting, which took place on November 29 at a banquet hall, injured 15 people in total and left at least four dead, including three children and a 21-year-old man later identified as Susano Archuleta, according to the San Joaquin County Sheriff’s Office and CBS News. The children who were killed were ages 8, 9, and 14.
Peterson’s family remembered him as “a bright, loved, and promising young soul whose life was taken far too soon by a senseless act of violence.”
“Amari was a football player, a basketball player, a brother, son, and cousin,” they wrote. “He was making plans and looking into colleges of choice. He was NOT involved in any gang activity. The only mistake this sweet boy made was being in the wrong place at the wrong time. He was simply being a kid at a kids’ party.”
More than 100 people were attending the party for a 2-year-old girl when the shots rang out. Roscoe Brown, the uncle of two children who were injured, described the shooting as “senseless,” asking, “Who would come and do that to some kids?”
One of the youngest victims, an 8-year-old, was a student in the Stockton Unified School District. Superintendent Michelle Rodriguez said, “As educators we hurt deeply anytime a child is hurt. We hold this student’s family in our hearts, and we grieve alongside them and our entire community.”
Investigators from the San Joaquin County Sheriff’s Office remained at the scene overnight, working with the California Department of Justice. The FBI and ATF are also assisting with the investigation.
Heather Brent, a spokesperson for the sheriff’s office, said, “Finding the person or persons who committed this crime is the number one priority. Right now, we ask this community, don’t let this divide you. Make it something that brings you together, come together as a community and let’s help each other.”
While authorities have not confirmed a motive, early indications suggest it may have been a targeted attack, and all possibilities are being explored.
Local officials have expressed shock and sorrow in the days following the tragedy. Stockton Mayor Christina Fugazi wrote on Instagram that she “could not sleep” after learning about the shooting.
“I lay there in disbelief about what these families, these children, and our entire community went through,” the mayor said. “The trauma they are living with is unimaginable. Children who saw things no child should ever see. Loved ones standing there, watching someone they care about murdered in cold blood right in front of them. These are wounds that will likely never heal, let alone quickly. This is trauma that will follow these kids and these families for the rest of their lives.”
The Stockton community now faces the painful process of grieving, while authorities work to bring those responsible to justice.
Senseless should be investigated