Family Members Of D.C. Drive-By Shooting Victims Call For Action

By Patrick Madden

Family members of the victims from the mass shooting in Southeast D.C. are pushing for legislative action. Several spent Monday at two separate D.C. Council hearings pressing for explanations and accountability.

Nardyne Jefferies testimony was hard to listen to.

"The last time I got to comb my daughter's beautiful hair was April 8th 2010 as I stood over her lilac casket," says Jefferies.

And it was hard to watch as Jefferies held up an 8 by 10 photograph of her daughter Brishell Jones face after the shooting.

"This is what happens when you allow assault weapons in the hands of anyone. AK-47s are made with one intent to kill," she says.

But her message was unmistakable.

"What happened that day was so senseless, so unnecessary, so violent, and just as importantly so preventable," she says.

Jefferies and other victims' family members want change on several fronts. They want the city's juvenile justice system to do a better job of keeping young offenders off the streets. They want prosecutors to act when police seek an arrest warrant. With word the city's strict gun laws could be dismantled under the deal to get voting rights, they say they want congress to leave the District alone.