Democracy Dies in Darkness

Her son was killed raking leaves. She wants to save other teens.

Two years after the fatal shooting of her teenage son, a Prince George’s County mother starts a foundation to honor his memory.

4 min
Jayz Agnew and his mom Juanita Agnew. (Courtesy of Juanita Agnew)

Festive pillows designed with leaves dot Juanita Agnew’s living room furniture and a wreath of red and orange leaves hangs outside her front door next to a “Hello Fall” sign. All silent reminders of a weight she has carried for two years.

Her son, Jayz Agnew, was 13, shot among the foliage that November as he raked leaves into piles in his front yard on a Tuesday afternoon. The bullet that entered his head took his life a few days later. His killer has never been caught.