KANSAS CITY, Kan. — A KCK mother is begging for justice after her 9-year-old son was unintentionally shot and killed by his 7-year-old brother.
It happened in Memphis near the end of May while the kids were living with their father.
Krystal Lewis said she’s heartbroken after finding out guns were available to the kids in the home, and that’s how her younger son unintentionally shot and killed his older brother.
It was a tense afternoon in Memphis on May 25. The shooting happened at a home on Clearbrook Street in Parkway Village, Memphis police said.
“I see them when they come home from school, well, when school was in, yes,” neighbor Kenneth Wilkins said. “See them all the time. It’s heartbreaking. It really is.”
“He’s not here. This has to stop,” Lewis said. “This has to stop. My kids have nightmares. This has to stop.”
Back in Kansas City, this mother is broken over the events that unfolded in Memphis.
“I didn’t have any strength anymore,” Lewis said. “I just knew that it was my time to get in the car and go to Memphis and get my other two.”
She went to Memphis and got brought her two children back to KCK after losing her son Steven Brunston Jr.
“When I got them, they were explaining to me that there were guns everywhere in the house, not just in the area where he was able to reach that one,” Lewis said.
She said that day Steven got the gun out and was showing it to his little brothers.
“My youngest son ended up grabbing the gun, and his older brother told him to put it down,” Lewis said. “In the process of putting it down, he dropped it. My son was laying on the floor.”
Lewis said she wants to bring Steven’s remains back to Missouri to have all her children in one place. She said due to the investigation and disagreements with family, she hasn’t been unable to do that.
“Until I get justice, I will not give up,” Lewis said. “I will continue to fight no matter what states I’ve got to continue to fight in. I will continue to fight. Steven, Mama loves you dearly, and I truly miss you.”
The home the children were in was visited by police before — twice in the last three months — and a man who is not the child’s father was arrested after an unrelated custody dispute.
The other incident at the home was a case of vandalism in March. Someone at the home reported their had their car keyed, possibly by an ex-girlfriend of someone living in the home.
Lewis said she wishes she had known the danger her children were in.
“Worry about the safety of our kids out here,” Lewis said. “Quit being selfish. I mean, with the selfishness and carelessness that is going on out here, we`re losing too many babies to gun violence. It needs to stop.”
Lewis said she left the children with their father because they separated, but she thought they would be safe with their father.
She said she would like to see someone charged in her son’s death. No charges have been filed in this case, but police say that could change as it remains under investigation.