LEE COUNTY, Fla. — Southwest Florida Crimestoppers released a new PSA on Wednesday aimed at deterring teen gun violence.
The video features teenagers from Southwest Florida, and Trish Routte with Crimestoppers says some of them had to bury a friend who lost their life from gun violence.
In the video was a face you may have seen before. The mother of Cape Coral teen Kayla Rincon-Miller, killed in March 2023, appeared in the PSA. Two teenagers are charged with her death.
WATCH BELOW TO SEE WHY THEY PUT TOGETHER THE PSA:
"With the continued instances of teens being shot and killed in our community, we wanted to at least send a message to parents and teenagers," Routte said.
According to Johns Hopkins Center for Gun Violence Solutions, a 2022 report showed guns are the leading cause of death for kids between one and 17-years-old.
"The sooner we get the guns out of the hands of our young adults, the sooner we can start enacting change in our community where we don't have to worry about kids killing each other," Routte explained.
She says the message is aimed towards kids and adults.
They want to encourage adults to have the tough conversations with their kids and make sure to lock up their guns.
This PSA comes a day after a 13-year-old Cape Coral boy was arrested for armed robbery after police say he used a gun to steal another child's scooter. It is important to note the release of the video and the day the crime happened is a pure coincidence.
Crimestoppers is working to get the video into all Southwest Florida schools.
