Mother petitions to hold parents accountable for gun access

Mother petitions to hold parents accountable for kids' gun access

The mother of a teen who was shot and killed in Auburn on July 12 is calling for accountability, and not just for the person who killed her son.

AUBURN, Wash. - The mother of a teen who was shot and killed in Auburn on July 12 is calling for accountability, and not just for the person who killed her son.

She started a petition asking lawmakers to give parents legal consequences if their child is responsible for gun violence.

"My son left the house for two hours and was killed that night," said Lonnisha Landry, Xavier's mom. "Every day I wake up with heartache, every day his siblings wake up with heartache."

FOX 13 previously reported on Xavier's murder in July.

Landry calls the pain and void in her life indescribable after losing her son Xavier in a shooting near the Auburn Chevron gas station.

Because she says Xavier was a good kid, and never carried a gun, the motive for his murder remains a mystery.

"I’m praying daily that someone is caught," said Landry.

She says in the last four weeks, she started paying attention to the juvenile justice system, watching several teens get arrested for illegally carrying weapons. Most were released on home detention. Some committed other crimes during that time.

She says a report that youths were flashing guns at the annual Chinatown Seafair Parade also prompted her to take action.

"Since they don’t want to let the kid be held accountable for their actions, then it’s time to go after the parents," said Landry.

In the last four weeks, she sharpened her focus and is now pushing a petition to call for more accountability for the parents of kids that carry guns or use them to commit crimes.

"I think that the parents should have to face the music since they don’t want to make the kids stand up and be accountable," said Landry.

The petition urges local and state lawmakers to enforce laws that would impose legal consequences on those parents who do not secure firearms at home or fail to restrict their child's access.

"I don’t even know if the suspects are juveniles in my son’s case, I just know that this is just what the lord placed on my heart," said Landry.

With more accountability, she feels that more lives would be saved. So far, more than 550 people have signed her petition.

"It’s just in memory of my son, but it’s also to speak up for the other children in the world," said Landry.

Landry says Crime Stoppers offered up to $1,000 in reward money for any information leading to an arrest in Xavier's case. The family also says they are hoping to contribute thousands more to the reward amount if someone comes forward with information that solves Xavier's case.