Ybor City shooting: Vigil honors victims killed, injured as community leaders call for change
YBOR CITY, Fla. - Families, lawmakers and advocates held a vigil at Centennial Park just three days after the Ybor shooting that left two dead and 16 injured.
On Wednesday night, the family of Harrison Boonstoppel, one of the two victims killed in the shooting on 7th Avenue, spoke at the vigil.
"My son died, and his two friends that were with him are in shock," Brucie Boonstoppel, Harrison’s mother, said.
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Brucie Boonstoppel, along with other advocates and some lawmakers, are calling for some type of change. She said never thought she would be standing in these shoes, after working hard to keep her children safe.
"I thought I had this safety bubble, because I’ve done everything right," she said "I’ve done everything right."
Harrison Boonstoppel was caught in the gunfire on 7th Avenue early Sunday morning. A 14-year-old boy was also killed and 16 other people were hurt.
"He could’ve outrun it, he could’ve done it," Brucie Boonstoppel said. "We believed thoroughly that we would’ve gone to the hospital, and he would’ve had a gunshot, but he would’ve been okay."
She said the medical examiner told them Harrison was shot three times, including a shot to his heart.
"Never in a million years, even though I see it on TV, never," she said. "And the fact that, of all these poor kids and people who got shot, for absolutely no reason."
At the vigil Wednesday, Rep. Diane Hart said she plans to fight for gun legislation.
"This is personal for me, and I feel so bad that so many innocent people have been injured," Rep. Hart said. "We have got to do something."
On Wednesday, Tampa City Councilor Gwen Henderson announced plans to propose changes at Thursday’s City Council meeting to improve safety. One of the main proposals would be to implement a six-month curfew of 1 a.m. for businesses in Ybor City.
"I think we have to have the discussion," Tampa City councilor Luis Viera said. "I'm firm on talking about it and moving it forward. We have to have all issues on the table."
Brucie Boonstoppel vowed to continue pushing for change in her son’s memory.
"After Sandy Hook, crying, crying," she said. "Thinking, surely things change, and then you get that helpless feeling of life that will Nothing will change. But it will. We have to think that. We have to just work harder."
Tampa City Council meets Thursday morning.