Kansas City’s spiraling homicide rate is hard to fathom. Read the victims’ names | Opinion

On Friday, Kansas City recorded its 100th homicide, the 21st killing since June 3. That’s correct — 21 people were killed in a span of 27 days.

Heading into the weekend, Kansas Citians were dying by the hands of others at an alarming rate. None of us should bury our heads and pretend the scourge of gun violence and senseless death pervading our city doesn’t affect our overall quality of life. It does.

“Violence is a deadly disease for which none of us are immune,” said Damon Daniel, executive director of the Ad Hoc Group Against Crime.

Through the end of June, we were on a record pace for the number of killings in one year, according to data compiled by The Star. Grieving families are often left to wonder if justice will ever come. At the end of the week, Kansas City police had cleared only 33% of these murders, an unacceptable number that is not a total indictment of the department — but a telling one.

Yes, under the leadership of new Kansas City Police Chief Stacey Graves, improved community relations is a priority. Reducing the number of violent, premature deaths in Kansas City should be, too. But as a community, we all must have skin in the game. The first homicide came eight days into the new year and the carnage hasn’t stopped.

Terrible start to a year that got worse

Shortly before 1 a.m. on Jan. 8, Charles Martin, 46, and Tanisha Williams, 35, would become Kansas City’s first and third homicide victims of 2023, but far from the last. Kansas City police officers found the pair unresponsive in the front yard of a home in the 2000 block of East 73rd Street. By the time officers arrived at the scene, Martin had died, officials said.

A day later, Williams was pronounced dead at an area hospital.

On Jan. 8, 16-year-old Amir Moore died from gunshot wounds after being dropped off at a Kansas City hospital. He became the city’s second homicide victim of the year and the first child killed, a troubling trend that Kansas City officials must be willing to address.

We are encouraged by the recent $30 million pledge from the City Council to fight violent crime. So far this year, nine of our children under 18 have been killed, though, according to police. Those between 18 and 24 are most at risk, making up 28% of the city’s homicide victims in the first half of the year.

Moore’s shooting occurred in the 1600 block of East 77th Terrace, according to police officials. In a GoFundMe post before his funeral in January, he was described as a “sweet soul.”

“Amir was such a beautiful, sweet soul who touched the lives of those around him,” his parents wrote.

In June, Amir’s mother, Natasha Moore, took to social media to pay tribute to her son. It was a heartbreaking message no mother should ever have to share. On Facebook, Moore wrote: “The deep, heavy ache I feel just to hear my son (Amir) say ‘Hey Momma!’ again.”

Most victims, suspects are Black men

Another hard fact we must come to terms with: By far, Black men make up the majority of Kansas City homicide victims and suspects, according to police data. No other ethnic group came in a close second. In Kansas City, 72% of homicide victims were Black men, as were 63% of those suspected of killing someone.

What can be done to protect young Black men in Kansas City? Let’s start with continued investment in underserved neighborhoods. Internships and quality job opportunities cannot be an afterthought. Neither can the emotional and mental well-being of some of our most vulnerable neighbors.

Mayor Quinton Lucas’ goal to reduce homicides to under 100 per year needs to be retooled. In just six months, we have reached the century mark in killings. Kansas City is in the early stages of copying Omaha’s violence prevention program, Omaha 360. Using a similar model here, city leaders must aim to reduce the number of child homicide victims to zero.

In Omaha, city officials and community advocates focus on intervention and prevention by addressing underlying issues that contribute to threats of gun violence such as lack of access to education, medical insurance or well-paying jobs, among other social determinants of health.

Will Kansas City follow this proven model? It should.

“This deadly behavioral disease is learned, yet it can be unlearned,” said Ad Hoc’s Daniel. “The way to improve toxic behavior associated with violent crime is to offer cognitive restructuring and increased access to better opportunities.

Remember the lives we have lost

It’s hard to fathom losing a child or loved one at any age. As we head into the hottest months of the year, we take this time to remember the lives of people killed in Kansas City. In order, from 1 to 100, here are the victims and the date they died:

1. Charles Martin, 46, Jan. 8

2. Amir Moore, 16, Jan. 8

3. Tanisha Williams, 35, Jan. 9

4. Jericho Petalino, 30, Jan. 12

5. Dahrell Johnson, 24, Jan. 17

6. Adam Blackstock, 24, Jan. 18

7. Douglas Menser, 66, Jan. 19

8. Bryson Washington, 29, Jan. 23

9. Mark Young, 31, Jan. 27

10. Gabriel Williams, 35, Jan. 27

11. Thomas Lewis, 20, Jan. 30

12. D’mitri Carr, 21, Jan. 31

13. Markhi A Williams, 19, Feb. 1

14. Eric J. Allison, 53, Feb. 2

15. Alawna Collier, 20, Feb. 3

16. Jesus Diaz de Leon, 26, Feb. 4

17. Derrick Rich, 30, Feb, 8

18. Deondrea Brand, 38, Feb. 8

19. Aaron Looney, 41, Feb. 20

20. Leigh Dalton, 44, Feb. 20

21. Marcus Bewley-Perez, 24, Feb. 20

22. Jamal W. Garcia, 53, Feb. 21

23. James Perry, 59, Feb. 25

24. Orlando D. Taylor Jr., 32, March 4

25. Glen A. Vassie, 60, March 4

26. Ricky Hardy, 33, March 10

27. Rodney White, 34, March 11

28. Darryl Brown, 24, March 12

29. Trianna Tisdale, 29, March 13

30. Nehemiah Clark, 65, March 14

31. Elizabeth Stivers, 31, March 14

32. Taima Dickens, 52, March 15

33. Abdullahi Yussuf, 30, March 15

34. Terrance Blewett, 42, March 15

35. Makel Williams, 18, March 16

36. Sylvester L. Roberts, 28, March 17

38. Oscar Cabral, 18, March 23

39. Jerome Oates, 31, March 25

40. Donald Young, 23, March 28

41. Robert Carter, 64, March 31

42. Raul Sanchez, 21, April 1

43. James Hill Jr., 29, April 3

44. Deonta Words, 28, March 29

45. Keith Martin, 56, April 4

46. Carl Stewart, 36, April 4

47. Zameyanna Williams, 18, April 8

48. Mark Bowman, 63, April 8

49. Victor Diaz Jimenez, 16, April 10

50. Unknown man, April 14

51. Malik Akins, 20, April 15

52. Ahmed Simmons, 33, April 15

53. Reginald E. Byers Jr., 43, April 19

54. Justin Treadway, 35, April 25

55. Anthony Garcia, 22, April 26

56. Deontrey Jones, 28, April 29

57. Terry Lovingood, 40, April 29

58. Joshua Ellison, 29, April 29

59. Jamie Craig, 44, April 29

60. Terrell Farrow, 19, May 3

61. Kavon Carter, 17, May 14

62. Tyrone L. Payne, 40, May 18

63. Donell James, 23, May 20

64. Jason McConnell, 41, May 21

65. Antoinette Brenson, 24, May 21

66. Clarence Henderson, 33, May 21

67. Nykolett Schroeder, 24, May 22

68. Keyion Brown, 37, May 22

69. Zechariah Washington, 16, May 23

70. Charles Jones, 18, May 26

71. Eric Preston, 51, May 28

72. Walter Madge, 59, May 28

73. Wardell Woods, 42, May 29

74. Deion Miles, 19, May 29

75. James Allen Jr., 24, May 29

76. Antonio Wells, 33, May 29

77. Unknown man, May 31

78. Unknown man, May 31

79. Jason Boggs, 46, June 3

80. DeMarkus Pleasant, 24, June 5

81. Derrick Thurman, 14, June 7

82. Crystal Rayner, 36, June 7

83. Marcell T. Nelson, 42, June 9

84. Kristen Fairchild, 42, June 9

85. Marquece Spencer, 17, June 12

86. J’rya Cockrell, 18, June 14

87. Unknown man, June 16

88. Darryl G. Brown, 39, June 16

89. Rickey A. Cubit, 45, June 17

90. Barbara Cooper, 37, June 20

91. Ryan Bowman, 42, June 20

92. Unknown teenager, June 21

93. Keith Rodgers, 20, June 23

95. Nikko Manning, 22, June 25

96. Camden Brown, 27, June 25

97. Jasity “Jas” Strong, 28, June 25

98. Ricky Monroe, 17, June 25

99. Ivan Tyson, 36, June 25

100. Unknown, June 30