After six months with no homicides in the city, Lexington police responded to four in August — an uptick one city official said is not unusual this time of year, but requires action.
The latest count includes an Aug. 15 mass shooting in Charles Young Park that left a teenager dead and four others injured. Jametrius Griffin, 18, was arrested and charged in the shooting, which occurred during a community event.
Griffin is charged with murder, two counts of assault in the first degree, two counts of assault in the second degree and tampering with physical evidence.
Another homicide occurred the following weekend, on Aug. 21, along Tilden Road.
Isaiah Padgett, 19, was arrested in connection with that shooting and charged with murder, fleeing in the first degree and robbery. Another suspect, Jordan Thomas Jackson, 19, turned himself in and has been charged with murder and first-degree robbery.
The Lexington Police Department is investigating all four homicides. Two Aug. 28 cases are ongoing with no suspects arrested: one on Loch Ness Drive and one on Cross Keys.
"It's definitely going to just differ per investigation,” said Jeff Jackson, who works with LPD’s robbery and homicide unit. “As with any homicide investigation, sometimes you have very clear leads to work on, evidence to go after. Sometimes you don't have anything for a little bit, so it would be impossible to say, you know, for example, in two weeks we'll have these answers.”
In the meantime, ONE Lexington, the city’s gun violence prevention program, is organizing twice-monthly community meetings at Shiloh Baptist Church.
At the gatherings, those affected can connect with resources, like music and art therapy, mindfulness exercises and mental health counseling. The organization mainly focuses on support for children and young adults.
“When we look at some of the root causes of gun violence, untreated trauma is at the top of that list, and so we're not looking at this as just to respond to some of the shootings that have happened, but also how do we help the community heal in general,” ONE Lexington Director Devine Carama said.
Carama said it’s not unusual for the city to see an increase in shootings around back-to-school season. He also pointed to Kentucky’s lax gun regulations as an underlying cause.
“Normally, when it gets a little warmer outside, we tend to see spikes,” he said. “I think the trend the last four or five years has always been around this time, end of August, September, once young people are back in school. Some of those beefs, some of those conflicts flare up where they haven't seen each other all summer.”
He said it’s important for the community to support those affected and help them work through trauma. This helps stop retaliatory violence and aid in destigmatizing mental health support.
Jackson, with LPD, said details of the homicides can’t be discussed, but the agency is also still investigating homicides from January and February.
“I do always like to reassure the families of other victims that we have not forgotten about your cases,” he said. “The detectives who are assigned to those are still chasing down every possible investigative lead they have. So really, I'd like to reassure people that the past doesn't stay in the past, that as we go forward, those are not forgotten.”
