ATLANTA — The family of a 16-year-old shot and killed at her high school over Memorial Day weekend is asking those who were at the gathering to step forward to help them find her killer.
“They have also been new revelations that there were other exchanges of gunfire that took place at the location as well because there were over 130 suspected rounds fired,” Davida Huntley, the spokesperson for the teen's family said Monday.
Huntley is speaking on behalf of Bre'Asia Powell's family as they mourn the loss of the 16-year-old. Powell just finished her sophomore year at Benjamin E. Mays High School and was among several teenagers who were in a party bus that ended with a stop on school property. It became what officials say was an unauthorized gathering. Around 2:30 a.m. Sunday, police were called to the shooting where they found Powell and a 16-year-old boy shot. Both were rushed to the hospital and Powell did not survive.
“We will miss Bre’ Asia, she was an amazing young woman, she was a superstar in her mother’s words, she was the life of the party, she was a scholar and a star athlete," Huntley said.
Friends of the teen are devastated by the loss.
“I didn’t want it to be her, out of everybody," a student who asked us not to disclose his identity said.
Another student added that she was nice and a cool person to be around. She was described as someone that people liked to hang out with and with an infectious personality.
The teens say now they are also concerned for their safety.
“I’m worried about going out places because of what happened," added one of the teens who asked to hide his identity.
As for the family, they’re asking those reeling from Powell’s death to not retaliate. Instead, they encourage other teens who were at the gathering to come forward with information.
“Help us find closure. We want to know who is responsible," Huntley said. “We don’t want this to be a continuous OK corral in the City of Atlanta; we don’t need another senseless life taken as a result of a retaliatory event that takes place."
CrimeStoppers is offering a $10,000 reward for information that leads to an arrest.