A Goldsboro mother told WRAL News her 13-year-old daughter was shot and killed on Sunday. Goldsboro police say three teenage boys are suspects in her death.
According to the Goldsboro Police Department, officers were called around 4:40 p.m. to Alpha Court off Patetown Road and found 13-year-old Jaleeyah Tune with a gunshot wound. She was pronounced dead when officers and EMS arrived.
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“She was lovely. She was in middle school. She was a good kid. She didn’t deserve this,” said Whitney Tune, the girl’s mother.
Wayne County Public Schools confirmed Tune was a seventh grader at Wayne Middle/High Academy. When students return from break, members of the school's Student Support Services team, along with district crisis team members as needed, will be available to support any students who may need someone to talk with regarding this tragedy and loss, according to the district.
Goldsboro police on Monday said three juvenile suspects were identified, arrested and charged with first-degree murder and conspiracy.
A 15-year-old and two 16-year-olds were arrested without incident and taken to Pitt Regional Juvenile Detention Center in Greenville, where they are being held pending their first court appearance.
Police will not identify those teens, but we have learned, from court records, 16-year-olds Jy'Aere Smith & Josh Jordan are charged. Both are being tried in superior court, and charged as adults at this time.
The department did not provide information on what led up to the shooting and how the three teenagers were involved. The incident remains an ongoing investigation, and additional information is to be released as it becomes available.
Tune said the loss is devastating and worries about what this means for other families in the area.
“I’m heartbroken,” Tune continued. “My daughter’s gone. Christmas [is] around the corner. She didn’t deserve this. She’s a little girl. She’s not coming home. It doesn’t matter where she lived, where she’d be; it shouldn’t happen. And [there are] other little kids out here that are in danger as well, with the violence.”
Mark Colebrook co-founded Hope For Youth Wayne County. While homicides are down in the city, he said it takes a village to raise and protect its young people.
"Instead of saying ‘those kids,’ we have to say ‘our kids,'" he said. "We can’t turn a blind eye and hope it goes away."