MEMPHIS, Tenn. — As a family and community continue to grapple with the shooting death of a 1-year-old in Frayser, doctors who find themselves treating such young victims of gun violence are speaking out.
The shooting happened in the 2400 block of Wellons Avenue on Saturday, Dec. 16. Police said they arrived on the scene around 2 a.m. to find shell casings on the concrete.
One-year-old Leo Weathers was taken to Regional One Health in critical condition, where he later died.
In a text message to ABC24, Leaundra Dockery said her son Leo was a happy, smart, and handsome baby and she was going to miss her baby. The moment was something the family never thought they would experience.
Unfortunately, Leo’s death added to the record breaking amount of children being treated for gunshot wounds at Le Bonheur Children’s Hospital in Memphis.
"Just got off the phone with another hospital who wants to transfer a child here, who's a 3-year-old with a gunshot wound, because they found an open fire arm," Dr. Nick Watkins said.
Watkins works in the emergency department at Le Bonheur and said medical staff there have treated more than 170 children for gunshot wounds so far in 2023. The number beats the previous record set in 2021 at 158.
"This is not just a city problem," said Dr. Derek Kelly with Campbell Clinic. "It's a region problem."
This slow and steady increase over the past decade has doctors like Kelly recommending gun safety locks to patients, even if they have not been impacted by gun violence.
"We fully expect that at the current rate our numbers are going to increase for next year unless something drastically changes," Kelly said.
"Each community member and each family member in our community can make a difference in their own homes, but also by reaching out to a local policy maker and advocating for safe storage laws and common sense gun laws," Watkins said.
At the moment, Memphis Police have not released any information on anyone involved in Saturday’s shooting, but ask anyone with any information to call CrimeStoppers at 901-528-CASH.
A GoFundMe has been set up by Leo’s family to help pay for funeral expenses. A link to the page can be found here.