HIGH POINT, N.C. - A violent and deadly week in High Point ends, as family and friends mourn the loss of 18-year-old Anastasia Ray and her unborn baby, and 61-year-old Brenda Herbin. Both women were shot and killed, only blocks apart.
Suspects in both cases are behind bars. But as officers search for another armed and dangerous man, wanted in connection to Herbin's murder, an underlying problem remains: gang violence.
“They get somewhat of an ‘I don't care’ attitude - or ‘it doesn't matter.’ I have talked to kids before, and I will talk to them about dying and they would say everybody has to die of something... that's a cold statement coming from a 15-year-old,” said Robert David, a gang prevention coordinator.
David says it's the young kids looking for love, acceptance, even basic needs like food and shelter, who are gravitating towards gangs.
“That is the trap for gangs all over the world, they provide something that that young person is missing in their life,” he said.
David currently he works for the city of Danville, Virginia, working to combat a widespread gang problem. But he's been doing work like this for decades: intervening before kids get into gangs, and helping them get out.
“If it’s about money, and it's about drugs, and it's about selling guns then there's going to be some people that are going to get hurt,” he said.
Before it gets to that point, David notes that there are signs. To see them, he says parents need to be on the same frequency as their kids: know who they're hanging out with, and what they're up to.
“Monitor social media. Who are they talking to? What are they looking at? What websites are they on?,” he said, “The other part is money, if you're not giving your child money and he's coming home with $100 Jordans or with new clothes you have to say, hey, there's something going on here.”
To truly make an impact, David says, it's about everyone coming together to find solutions.
“It’s a city problem, it's a community problem, it's a household problem.”
David's methods to combat gangs and gang violence are twofold. First, prevention: getting to kids early on before they're enticed to join, by offering other alternatives, like sports or community groups. For those already in gangs - it's about intervention: showing them there's opportunity outside of gang membership.
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