Hundreds of Queens residents and community members mourned 15-year-old Jaden Pierre, who was killed at Roy Wilkins Park last week. Eagle photo by Ryan Schwach
By Ryan Schwach
Hundreds gathered in Roy Wilkins Park on Monday evening to mourn the death of 15-year-old Jaden Pierre, who was shot and killed in the park just days earlier.
At a deeply emotional community vigil, members of Pierre’s family, clergy and elected officials called for justice and an end to gun violence in Southeast Queens in the wake of the murder, which is still being investigated and has yet to lead to an arrest.
“That was my life, everything,” said Jaden’s father, standing alongside his family and community leaders. “I love you Jaden.”
Pierre, who lived in South Richmond Hill, was shot and killed in the well-known St. Albans park on Thursday, shocking the community and causing widespread outrage over gun violence in Southeast Queens. He appeared to be shot during a massive brawl that was recorded by many of the over two dozen teenage bystanders cheering on the fight.
“This 15-year-old child with his book bag, was beaten and shot to death in a park, my God,” said an emotional Public Advocate Jumaane Williams. “People videoed it with their camera. Why was his life not worth you putting the phone down and getting some way to help him so he wasn’t shot to death? His life was worth protecting.”
Williams and Queens Borough President Donovan Richards called on the federal government to do more to stop illegal guns from making their way into Queens and New York streets.
“It’s a lot of people dying for something so preventable,” said Williams. “Congress, the devil is on your neck, y’all gotta stop this flow of guns into our community. Every single illegal gun was legal at some point, stop talking about the legal versus legal. The demonic obsession with guns in this freaking country is the problem.”
Police are still looking for the teen who was seen on video shooting and killing 15-year-old Jaden Pierre in Queens. Eagle photo by Ryan Schwach
Richards echoed a similar sentiment.
“There are no gun manufacturers in Queens County, there are no gun manufacturers in South Jamaica,” he said. “This epidemic that we face, is to cause our demise.”
Other speakers called for more city and state resources – and more effort from members of the community – to address violence among youth in Southeast Queens.
“I blame all the adults that sat there and watched,” said James Johnson, a local leader. “These are our babies. If we don’t take care of them, if we don’t take care of our own babies, who is going to take care of us?”
Shootings are down in Southeast Queens. In the busy 113th Precinct where the shooting took place, shooting incidents are down 50 percent this year.
But locals said Monday, it doesn’t feel as though the numbers address the reality on the ground.
“I hear stats are the stats, and stats and stats, but I’m walking the street and there’s gun violence everywhere,” said a local pastor.
Pierre was remembered on Monday night, by family, friends and classmates.
Many wore jackets and t-shirts from his high school, Eagle Academy, which is located just down the street from the park.
Candles were lit at a memorial covered in flowers. Jaden’s name was written with small lights.
His great-grandmother, Nellie Washington, and another young member of his family recalled Pierre’s love of basketball, and the hopes he might play professionally one day, as well as his love of the video game Fortnite and dancing.
“He was the best,” said the young family member who did not give reporters his name.
Washington described the pain she felt seeing the video of her great-grandson’s murder.
“I saw it on the video, and that pain went into my heart, it went into my heart, I felt it,” she said. “I felt my great-grandson in pain, because I felt the pain. This should not happen to no mother.”
As of Tuesday afternoon, the NYPD continued to investigate the shooting and had yet to make an arrest.
Pierre was shot by what appeared to be another teen around 6:15 p.m. on Thursday in broad daylight in the park, not far from the basketball courts where Monday’s vigil was held. The fight that led to the shooting involved a large number of teens.
Videos posted to social media showed the preceding fight, and then the alleged killer hitting Pierre once with the gun, then doing so again. During the second strike, the gun fired and hit Pierre, who slumped to the ground immediately.
Police have not said what caused the skirmish.
The 15-year-old was taken by medics to Jamaica Hospital, where he was pronounced dead.
The NYPD, which called the shooting a “horrific act of violence” in a social media post, said the suspected shooter was wearing all gray clothing and white sneakers at the time of the attack.
Wanted signs of the alleged shooter littered the park on Monday.
Queens community members called for progress and change at a vigil for 15-year-old Jaden Pierre Monday night. Eagle photo by Ryan Schwach
Attorney General Letitia James called for the shooter to turn himself in.
“Surrender as soon as possible, before the NYPD gets to you, or the community,” she said. “They know who you are. They know where you are, and I would urge you to surrender.”
Pierre’s killing is reminiscent of the shooting death of 14-year-old Aamir Griffin, who was gunned down in 2019, around a half mile away from where Pierre was shot.
Griffin was playing basketball at the Baisley Park Houses on Oct. 26, 2019 when another teenager, Sean Brown, mistook him for a rival gang member.
Brown, who was arrested as part of a major gang takedown in Southeast Queens, was convicted for Griffin’s killing in 2024 and sentenced to 30 years behind bars.
