Reports Indicate He Was Shot and Killed by Law Enforcement Officials Last Night as He Tried to Leave a Traffic Stop
EAST PITTSBURGH, Pa– The Pennsylvania chapter of Moms Demand Action for Gun Sense in America, part of Everytown for Gun Safety, issued the following statement in response to reports that East Pittsburgh police officers shot and killed Antwon Rose, a 17-year-old student at Woodlands Hills School District, last night. According to news reports, law enforcement officials stopped a car believed to have been involved in a shooting earlier that evening. Rose and a fellow passenger jumped out of the car and ran. Rose, who was a student at Woodland Hills School District, was unarmed when he was shot three times and later died at a hospital. The Alleghany County police department is investigating the shooting.
Every day in America, hundreds of people are wounded by gunfire and 96 people are shot and killed. This includes shootings by police, which disproportionately affect the Black community. According to the Washington Post Police Shootings Database, police shoot and kill nearly 1,000 people each year.
Gun violence in America — including shootings by and of police– has a devastating impact on the victims, their loved ones and whole communities. When it comes to police shootings, a single incident can shatter trust between police and the community, making community members less likely to reach out to police for help, and making it harder for police to do their jobs.
STATEMENT FROM JENNY RUTH PARTICA, VOLUNTEER WITH THE PENNSYLVANIA CHAPTER OF MOMS DEMAND ACTION FOR GUN SENSE IN AMERICA:
“Once again we find ourselves grieving due to gun violence. I extend my deepest condolences to Antwon Rose’s family, friends, classmates and the East Pittsburgh community. Police shootings are but one tragic part of gun violence in America, and law enforcement must be part of the solution to ending everyday gun violence. Communities of color should not live in fear of those who are supposed to protect them.”
