In a post on Facebook, Pastor Ben Hayes, a chaplain for the Dadeville Police Department and the local high school football team, said he stood outside the local hospital until 3 a.m. “watching hearts break as families learned that their child had been shot — or even worse, dead.”
“I talked with parents, educators, students. My football players. Our pastors from First Baptist Church. No one knew what to say. Everyone was in shock,” Hayes wrote. “Police officers with looks of sadness on their faces. Nothing prepares you for this.”
Hayes told ABC News on Sunday morning that there were more than 50 people at the party and the shooting followed an argument.
In a statement, Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey said she is grieving with the people of Dadeville.
“Violent crime has NO place in our state, and we are staying closely updated by law enforcement as details emerge,” Ivey wrote on Twitter.
Gun violence in the US is a public health crisis, according to the American Public Health Association. It is a leading cause of premature death in the country, responsible for more than 38,000 deaths annually. As of April 16, at least 5,251 people have died from gun violence this year, and another 6,996 have died by suicide, according to data from the Gun Violence Archive.
Source: https://www.buzzfeed.com/pocharaponneammanee/shooting-dadesville-alabama-birthday-party
