MEMPHIS, Tenn. — Angry, brokenhearted and scared. That’s how Toya Jefferson spends most of her days.
In 2016, her 19-year-old son was murdered.
Jonathan Jefferson was shot multiple times and left for dead.
West Memphis Police say Jefferson was walking in the 2500 block of East Monroe when someone pulled up along side him and opened fire, killing the teen and breaking his mother’s heart.
“It hurts so bad. I haven’t been to my son’s grave. I can’t go out there,” Jefferson said. “I’m sick. I’m so sick. I just keep trying to hold on.”
Jefferson moved out of her home one week before her son’s murder.
She says someone fired a shot into her house, scaring her and her family.
“They are just going around here just killing one another,” she said.
West Memphis Police say when the gunmen opened fire on Jefferson they also fired several rounds into a house full of children.
“You put a house full of children at risk. You picked a family at risk. It is ridiculous. These are innocent people inside eating dinner. In this case, they were getting their kids ready for bed. And the next thing you know, they have bullets flying into their house for no reason,” West Memphis Police said.
Jefferson wants two things. Her son’s killer behind bars and for the violence to stop.
“I was a good parent. I didn’t run the streets or do anything like that. I went to work and came home. I tried to raise my son the best that I could,” she said.” They grew up in the neighborhood together, and the only thing they can do is turn around and pull a gun on one another. It’s not right.”
If you know who killed 19-year-old Jonathan Jefferson, call West Memphis Police at 870-735-1210.
