Sister of Amaria Jones, 13-year-old shot and killed last month, spoke Saturday in Chicago's Austin neighborhood, asking politicians to take action in curbing Chicago gun violence.
Mercedes Jones spoke at a Saturday press conference about her family's frustration with the handling of her sister's murder case from Father's Day weekend.
"No child deserves to die," Jones said. "Then everyone goes on with their lives like we're not human."
Jones said that since her family buried her younger sister, there has been little to no progress in her case and no one has reached out to help.
Community and family members accompanied Jones in asking local politicians to take action against gun violence in the city. The group said they will approach Mayor Lori Lightfoot later this month to demand action if nothing is done.
Specifically, community leaders asked Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker to declare an emergency health crisis and give the same attention to gun violence as the COVID-19 pandemic.
"Never in a million years did I think this would happen to a child, to someone in my family, to someone I love dearly," Jones said. "It didn't start with her. It didn't end with her."
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According to authorities, a group of people were standing on the front porch of the residence at approximately 8:35 p.m. when a person fired shots at them. One of the bullets flew into the house, fatally hitting Jones, who was sitting in the living room at the time of the shooting.
The gunman then fled the scene in the silver vehicle shown in the photos.
Police believe the car is a silver Infiniti G35 or G37, with two doors and no front license plate. The vehicle also has tinted windows.
