Mother pleads for violence to end after teen killed over $10
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Atlanta, GA (WGCL) — “When they took him they took my whole life,” Tomeka Pless said.
Thursday afternoon a grieving family, fighting tears, marched to the location where their loved one took his last breath. Tomeka Pless told CBS46 that on Saturday morning her 18-year-old son Jalanni woke up early to sell water.
“He was like mama I feel like something, like my day is not gonna go right, so I’m just gonna sell a couple of waters and I’ll come home,” Pless recalled.
Jalanni headed to the 90th block of 8th Street to sell his waters. An hour later tragedy struck.
“That’s when I got the frantic call from his girlfriend saying, ‘Where is Jalani?’ I’m like he’s selling water. She said no, ‘They just FaceTimed me saying he’s been shot and I see him laying on the ground,’” Pless explained.
Pless rushed to her son, but it was too late.
“I wasn’t informed that he was deceased at that time, but I knew then that he was gone,” Pless said.
She said another teen selling water at the same location as Jalanni fired the fatal shots.
“An altercation and a fight broke out. The young man left, then came back and approached my son and shot him down. All over $10 d.”
On Thursday, Pless and loved ones held a rally in Jalanni’s honor at the location of the shooting. Their hope was to begin bringing an end to violence.
To the mother of her son’s killer she had one final plea.
“You know what your son did. He’s only 16, turn him in, make him turn himself in because it was senseless. Nobody should have to lose their life over $10, over some water.”
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