Police hunt for shooter in Parkland, WA teen murder

Name: Family of 18-year-old killed in Parkland, WA shooting calls for justice, gun reform
Uploaded: 2026-03-09T16:47:37-07:00
Description: The family of 18-year-old Jack Bartlett is mourning after he was shot and killed outside his Parkland apartment building Saturday morning. As investigators search for a suspect, his parents are calling for answers, stricter gun laws and urging whoever is responsible to turn themselves in.

Family of 18-year-old killed in Parkland, WA shooting calls for justice, gun reform

The family of 18-year-old Jack Bartlett is mourning after he was shot and killed outside his Parkland apartment building Saturday morning. As investigators search for a suspect, his parents are calling for answers, stricter gun laws and urging whoever is responsible to turn themselves in.

PARKLAND, Wash. - Investigators are looking for the person who shot and killed an 18-year-old in Pierce County.

FOX 13 talked with the victim’s family as they figure out how to cope with the unimaginable loss. They identified him as Jack Bartlett.

What they're saying:

"I need to put the broken pieces of my family back together and the pieces aren’t fitting because the main piece is gone," Tanya Bartlett, Jack’s mother said. "We’re here at a cemetery because death doesn’t just stop when the violence happens."

Parents of slain 18-year-old Jack Bartlett in the foreground, the crime scene area at the apartment complex where he was shot in the background

The backstory:

On Saturday morning, the Pierce County Sheriff’s Office said they found the 18-year-old shot and killed in front of his apartment building on 112th Street East in Parkland. His family is heartbroken.

"How do you tell a special needs child that his brother’s gone? You can’t, it hurts so bad, and I’m so angry. I want my son back," Tanya Bartlett said.

They told FOX 13 that Jack was smart, funny, and caring. His loss now leaves a space that can’t be filled. "I always imagined us being older and talking about life and our childhood," Breannah Bartlett, Jack’s older sister said. She and her family are now calling on stricter gun laws because they believe this could have been prevented.

"This isn’t a first, and it won’t be the last," Breannah Bartlett said. "I don’t want my brother to be a lesson or a hashtag, he’s proof that this is still a problem."

Mom of Parkland shooting victim pleads to suspect

Jack’s mom has a message for whoever is behind her son’s murder. "You broke our family and I hope your conscience gets to you and I beg you turn yourself in and give our family peace," Tanya Bartlett said.

The family has a GoFundMe to help pay for funeral expenses.