Junior Max Wine was involved in an act of violence that was out of anyone’s control.
About a year ago, Wine’s house was the target of a drive by shootout. Supposedly, the shooting was caused by an earlier road rage incident, when the shooter saw a car in Wine’s driveway similar to the car he had a conflict with earlier, deciding to shoot at the house.
“When the shots went off I was very confused,” Wine said. “It sounded like a thudding noise but 10 times louder, so my whole family went downstairs and realized it was a gunshot. I was shocked when I realized it was a bullet that had gone through my house.”
Wine’s story is not unusual. Charlotte is considered a relatively safe city, but in recent months violence has increased in Charlotte, especially East Charlotte where East Meck is located.
There has been a noticeable increase in crime, with the number of cases of larceny, auto thefts and robberies cases rising here in East Charlotte.
The auto thefts have grown exponentially due to teens taking a TikTok challenge to steal certain Hyundai and Kia cars.
CMS is the second largest school district in North Carolina. With 176 schools, the city is supposed to be a safe place where kids can walk from their bus stop to their home without being harmed.
One area of concern according to the CMPD (Charlotte Mecklenburg Police Department), has been the 17 records of homicide cases in Charlotte within 2023 so far.
Also of great concern has been the number of shootings, some of which include minors who go to Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools.
On Feb. 12 a 15-year-old boy who went to Independence High School, was found dead from an accidental shooting, right off of Harrisburg road. That is located in the most eastern part of Charlotte, a place where some East Meck IB students call home.
IB senior Tyson Jennings lives about 5 minutes off Harrisburg Road.
“It’s a scary thing to hear about all the time,” Jennings said. “I just try to make sure I’m more vigilant in areas I know are more dangerous, especially when it’s people my age that are getting harmed.”
Even though there has been an increased awareness of crime in Charlotte, most East Meck students are not overly concerned.
Wine has gone to East for three years now.
“I wouldn’t want to go to any other school in CMS,” Wine said. “I feel safe going here and I enjoy being with my friends.”
East Meck’s CMPD officer, Officer Jerry Silcox, takes his job seriously, vowing to protect students from violent crimes or threats. His main duty is to patrol the school during the day and any sporting events after school, but he’s also a detective for CMPD when dealing with school threats.
Silcox is very concerned about the number of cases involving teens an weapons.
“Gun violence is horrible with teens,” Officer Silcox said. “It really feels like it’s getting worse out there.”
Silcox has been with CMPD for 17 years, and his home station is the Independence precinct. The Independence station is currently in charge of overlooking the shooting on Harrisburg road.
Regarding youth violence, the obvious question is how can it be stopped. Realistically, there will never entirely be an answer, but there are different ways to suppress it.
“As far as gun violence in anything that has to do with school is everyone reporting and everyone pays attention to what’s going on,” Silcox said. “CMPD and CMS do not take any threats against the school lightly, and every one will be investigated.”
Officer Silcox has been here at East for a year now and loves what he does.
“Every single child, every person, even the security at East is my responsibility,” Silcox said. “And that is my number one.”
