JACKSONVILE, Fla. – A man is expected to recover after being shot several times early Sunday morning in Northwest Jacksonville, the Jacksonville Sheriff's Office said.
Police were called to the intersection of West 6th Street and Barnett Street around 2:30 a.m. The man, whose name was not released, was taken to UF Health Jacksonville.
Witnesses described the shooter as a black man wearing all black clothing and fled the scene on a bicycle.
It is the fourth shooting in seven days in Northwest Jacksonville.
“Sometimes, it does hit home when shootings happen in Jacksonville,” Stanton High School student Jordan Webster said. “But, with my friends, we talk about it a lot and kind of think it’s crazy that it happens so much.”
Webster’s concerns aren’t without warrant. Jacksonville is at 90 homicides this year, the most recent being at a Brentwood gas station. Along with prayer, 15-year-old Webster has advice for change.
“You gotta just ask yourself, ‘Who would it affect more?’’’ Webster said. “Would it affect the person that’s asking you to do this or would it affect you? If you’re having a hard time saying no to your friends, maybe you should find friends that won’t ask you to make such tough decisions that could possibly get you in trouble.”
Webster is also the son of a preacher. Reverend Wendell Webster said parents need to step up and be more involved.
“I keep him close to me,” Rev. Webster said. “If he’s in an activity, I’m in an activity. He plays football, I’m at the game.”
Former Jacksonville City Council member Pat Felder said that’s not the reality for most people, looking around Northwest Jacksonville.
“I’m looking now at young men, they don’t even care about life,” Felder said. “We’ve got to put hope back in them. There’s no hope for them right now.”
Webster, who aspires to study psychology at the University of Florida, said he has hope for a brighter future for everyone around him.
“I hope that it’ll stop one day,” Webster said. “One day, we can all just live in peace and that this violence won’t happen forever. No one wants violence in their community.”
Anyone with information regarding the shooting on West 6th and Barnet streets is asked to contact police at 904-630-0500. You can also call Crime Stoppers at 866-845-TIPS.