Allendale County on edge after slaying of teen, 2 other shootings
FAIRFAX, S.C. (WRDW/WAGT) - People in Allendale County are on high alert as they cope with a wave of shootings – one that killed a 14-year-old girl, one that injured a police officer in Allendale and one that hurt an 11-year-old.
Police wouldn’t say whether there’s a link between the shootings – which are part of an outbreak of deadly crime that’s claimed more than 150 lives across the CSRA in two years.
It’s an outbreak that’s also being felt in Augusta, where another 14-year-old was shot dead just days later at the Cedarwood Apartments.
In the Fairfax shooting, 14-year-old Markayla Aiyonna Roberts, was sleeping when she was hit by a bullet that came from outside the house off Bayshore Drive in Fairfax.
Her family said about 19 bullets were fired, and one hit just outside a window of the mobile home.
She was pronounced dead around 1:47 a.m. Saturday. An autopsy is scheduled for Tuesday.
The freshman at Allendale-Fairfax High School was heavily involved in Junior ROTC, loved drawing and was planning to graduate early.
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People in the adjacent town of Allendale don’t feel any safer.
The police officer was shot there after responding early Saturday afternoon to a shooting incident at Raysor Road and Carroll Street.
The neighborhood is no stranger to gun violence.
About two months ago, there was a fatal shooting there.
On Monday, three bullet marks were visible on a car parked in the driveway of the house, and two bullets made it through the enger seat.
A 5-year-old child was in the car at the time of the shooting.
On Carroll Street, neighbors are holding onto each other.
“This isn’t a safe community,” said resident Keisha Shannon. “I could just hear the kids screaming.”
For her, there’s no escaping what happened in her front yard.
“We’re gonna hear it every day,” she said, “You’ll hear it again, you’ll hear it again, you’ll hear it all the time.”
It’s a soundtrack she wants to stop.
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“I walked through the front door, and I saw my sister-in-law laying down in her car. And her daughter was in there screaming and crying,” she said.
“She was in the backseat. And she was trying to hold her down. And the boy was standing very, pretty close. And he was shooting at the police officer.”
The bullet holes in the car show a picture of what could have happened.
“Anything could have happened,” she said. “He could have shot that car and it blew up.”
She said it doesn’t make sense for someone to feel safe shooting in a neighborhood where people have kids and where school buses come.
“Don’t make sense at all that we can’t be safe in our community, in our home, where we lay our heads at night,” she said.
The small town may never make sense of what happened, but all the residents can do now is hold each other tight.
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The violence is affecting the whole county.
The Allendale County School District boosted security Monday, sending students through scanners and restricting what they could bring to school.
Superintendent Dr. Vallerie C. Cave thanked parents and students for their cooperation.
She said the district will continue to screen with metal detectors and wand scanners.
Students will be able to bring their school-issued electronic devices and clear backpacks on Tuesday.
But cellphones and personal electronic devices will be confiscated.
All after-school activities will resume Tuesday.
Cave is among those leading the charge for change.
“This is a time for action. We must come together to address the root causes of violence and work tirelessly to ensure the safety of our children,” she said on Facebook.
“We cannot accept living in fear,” she said. “I am calling on all community , local organizations, and law enforcement to collaborate on comprehensive strategies to prevent such tragedies from ever occurring again.”
Police agree.
“We cannot, as a community, accept or condone violence as a part of our culture. The most innocent in our communities are being hurt and lost to violence they don’t have a hand in,” the Allendale Police Department said in a statement. “This is not acceptable.”
Allendale police asked anyone with information to provide an anonymous tip at 803-584-2178 or [email protected].
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