A high school rising star who spoke fluent Chinese was shot and killed by an 18-year-old at a local park Monday, according to reports.
Fifteen-year-old Lovely Jenkins was rushed to a local hospital at around 3:00 pm after authorities responded to a call of teens fighting at a park in Columbus, Ohio. Shots were fired and struck Jenkins shortly before police arrived. She was taken to Nationwide Children’s Hospital in critical condition and pronounced dead several hours later. She is the 110th victim to die from homicide in Columbus this year.
According to court documents, detectives have identified Roshawn Adkins Jr. as the possible shooter in the death of Kendricks. A warrant for the arrest of the 18-year-old suspect, who has been charged with one count of murder, has been filed.
“She was a light,” Kendrick’s mother, Dorris Moore, told a local TV station. Columbus City Schools confirmed she was a member of the cheer squad at her high school where she was a sophomore.
“My daughter was so ambitious and over the top. She was amazing. She was ahead of her time,” her father, Clarence Roberts, told NBC 4.
Columbus Mayor Andrew Ginther also issued a statement to the media about Kendrick’s death.
“I am heartbroken at the violent death of a 15-year-old in our city, and I grieve with her family. The epidemic of guns is costing us the next generation of residents and leaders because arguments escalate so quickly to gunfire. I am beyond frustrated that the state and federal government will do nothing to keep firearms out of the hands of those who have no business with them. We will continue to fight crime locally by putting more officers on the street, investing in cameras and other technology and offering a variety of programs to engage our young people.”
Anyone with information about the shooting is asked to call the Columbus Police Homicide Unit at 614-645-4730 or Central Ohio Crime Stoppers at 614-461-8477.
