Nykerah Strawder was grieving the loss of her teen daughter, Nykayla Strawder, whom cops said was shot and killed by a 9-year-old boy allegedly playing with a loaded handgun.
The mom from Baltimore was heartbroken after her beloved girl suffered a headshot wound on her porch in the Edmondson Village neighborhood on Saturday, August 6, according to WAFB.
The distraught mom said she heard a "Boom!" when the shooting occurred. Nykerah said it shook her house and shook her soul. She looked to the left and saw her daughter lying there. She added that she did not see the blood then. She went to her fallen daughter to check on her condition.
Nine-year-old boy pulled the trigger in tragic shooting
The 15-year-old victim was taken to the hospital, where she was later pronounced dead. Nykerah said that she got to speak for her daughter, and she got to be her voice. She was emotional when recalling her dead child, saying, "I got to let the world know that my daughter was everything to me. She was everything. I watched what I formed in my womb leave her body."
According to police, the person who pulled the trigger was a nine-year-old boy. Witnesses who saw the shooting told investigators that the boy was playing with a loaded handgun when it accidentally discharged, killing Nykayla in the process, the New York Post reported.
The young child will not face charges, though, because of his age. Children under 13 can't be charged with a crime under a new Maryland juvenile justice law. Kids younger than ten years old are considered outside juvenile courts' jurisdiction.
Strawder wants justice to be served, though, saying this is a child that was able to get to a Glock and shoot her baby right in the head on her porch. She added that her soul and heart know this is wrong and that this is no accident.
Teen shootings rising in Edmondson Village
According to police, their investigation into how the boy obtained the weapon remains open. The gun the boy fired was registered to a relative of his who works as a security guard, according to CBS News.
While the nine-year-old boy can't legally be charged with Nykayla's death, detectives involved in the case are working with the state attorney's office to decide whether any charges will be filed against the suspect's relatives.
Strawder said she wanted her daughter to get the justice that she deserved. She doesn't want her child to look down upon what is happening right now and say that she was another statistic in her city and wasn't getting justice.
