Army mother comes home to tragedy

[flashl]

The soldier serving in Iraq worried about many things, but her son's being killed on the streets of L.A. wasn't one of them.

Army Sgt. Anita Shaw spent endless hours worrying about her teenage son while she served in Iraq.

She worried about his learning to drive without her, then maybe having a car accident. She worried about his not seeing a doctor if he needed to, or forgetting to go to the dentist. She worried about his having trouble in school.

...

Her son, Jamiel Shaw Jr., 17, was killed last Sunday when two men in a car pulled up next to him, asked if he belonged to a gang, then shot him when he didn't answer. He was three houses from home in the Mid-City area of Los Angeles.

Police said Jamiel was not affiliated with a gang. He was a high school football star who hoped to earn a college scholarship and become a sports agent, family members said.

LA Times

:cry:

[barbtries]

1. heartbreaking

thanks for sharing

[Olney Blue]

2. This is so sad. My condolences to the family.

[Mojorabbit]

3. I used to read a lot about gangs

and then the reporting seemed to die off so I assumed the problem had declined a bit. I guess it hasn't...

[cornermouse]

4. No.

They've spread to the midwest.

[unhappycamper]

5. I think gangs are still a big problem in the military.

You'll read about gang-related incidents in this forum at least every 10 days or so. The waiver program is working great. :sarcasm:

[jody]

6. I've read several articles about warfare between hispanic and black gangs in LA. I wonder if this

incident is related to that major problem?