Slain Durham boy's grandmother: 'This has to stop'

But for Sandra Person, the loss of her grandson Z'yon has broken her family while steeling her resolve to make sure his death has meaning.

"What happened was very senseless," Person said. "This has to stop. I mean, people run around here shooting people, for what reason? There’s no reason at all that anybody needs to have a gun and just go around shooting people."

Durham officials agree, vowing that local and federal law enforcement agencies will work more closely to arrest and prosecute people for gun crimes and imploring the community to join in the effort.

"This senseless, unspeakable act has galvanized our community for action," Durham Mayor Steve Schewel said about Z'yon's death at an afternoon news conference. "This is a tragedy beyond words, but it is not a tragedy beyond action.

"While we mourn, we must act," Schewel said. "We cannot accept the level of gun violence that exists in our society in general and in Durham in particular."

"When Z’yon got shot, his sister was right there. He fell right into her arms," Person said. "She’s traumatized the rest of her life. All my grandkids are traumatized."

"This is something that is going to stick with them the rest of their lives because they were there," she added. "They’re not the same kids I saw last week. Their whole life changed because of what happened."

Z'yon had recently finished his back-to-school shopping before starting the fourth grade, his grandmother said, describing him as kind and helpful. She also said he loved playing football and would have started his first game as quarterback on Monday.

An 8-year-old boy in the car was shot in the arm during the incident.

"You took something that was very dear to me and my family, and you injured another one of my grandkids. You are heartless. You’re a coward," Person said of the gunman.

Durham Police Chief C.J. Davis, Durham County Sheriff Clarence Birkhead, Durham County District Attorney Satana Deberry and U.S. Attorney Matt Martin all expressed outrage over Z'yon's death and said their efforts would be "laser-focused" on battling gun violence and gun crimes.

For example, a federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives agent is now embedded with the Durham Police Department, using technology that scans shell casings found at crime scenes for comparison with a national database to link up various crimes and help bring shooters to justice, Martin said.

Martin also said the U.S. Department of Justice will look at trying more of Durham's firearms cases in federal court, where sentences for such crimes are stiffer.

"We will try our best to try to take you federal, and that's a whole different ballgame," he said.

No one has been charged in Z'yon's death, but Davis has said there are "indications" the shooting was gang-related. The police department is focusing more resources on gangs, she said.

"There are individuals that continue to wreak havoc on our community. I know some of them by their first name," she said of repeat offenders, many of whom are gang members.

Davis also noted that more than 200 guns have been reported stolen in Durham since the beginning of the year, and her officers recovered 30 stolen firearms during arrests in the past month. She urged gun owners to secure their firearms so that they don't fall into the wrong hands.

For her part, Person said she plans to lobby state lawmakers to enact tougher penalties for people who shoot youngsters – an effort she called Z'yon's Law.

"Z’yon, we all love you. We all miss you so much," she said. "Your name, honey, is not going to go down in vain. Grandma’s going to fight for you, for your name to stay alive."