FORT WORTH, Texas — Lakesha Bay sees light at the end of the tunnel in her quest for justice. She lost her son in a shooting involving another child. She knows she'll have to deal with the loss for the rest of her life.
"I will never get over the loss of Treyshawn," Bay said. "I'm just praying for God to just ease the pain."
Bay fought through tears talking about her 12-year-old son and her fight for justice.
"Being a mother is one of the hardest jobs you can ever have. And to lose your child, it's just devastating. I don't even have words," Bay cried.
During her interview with WFAA she held one of her favorite photos of Treyshawn. It shows her son with his dreadlocks colored red for the first time, which she hesitated letting him do. But when she saw them and how happy he was, it made her happy too.
Treyshawn's personality was always to set his own trend as a young leader, Bay said. That included fashion. Other memories she shared included his poster-size family photos, and how he loved his PlayStation gaming chair in the living room.
"If he was not gaming, either he was riding his scooter and the scooters over there propped up against the wall," Bay pointed out in her home.
Treyshawn died on June 19 in an accidental shooting, according to Fort Worth police, who described the case as tragic. The shooting happened after a 3-year-old found a loaded handgun and pulled the trigger while at a Fort Worth music studio. There were several adults at the location but no adults present took responsibility for the gun being left unattended, according to police.
Bay wanted answers about her son's shooting death.
"I've called the detective. I've called the police departments," Bay said. "I've even called just people in the neighborhood. Have you heard anything? Is there any information on the street?"
On July 25, Fort Worth's homicide department announced the arrest of Decarlos Jordan for tampering with physical evidence with the intent to impair in the case. In Texas, that's a 3rd degree felony.
Bay knows nothing will bring Treyshawn back. But as a mother, Bay wants other people avoid the same pain and put safety first when it comes to gun ownership. Shortly after the shooting, she started doing some online research about gun locks and how much they cost.
"The cheapest gunlock on the internet that I saw was $9.97," Bay said.
There are some police departments across North Texas who have free gunlocks to give away to the public. The last thing Bay wants is for another mother to experience the pain she is going through right now after losing Treyshawn in an accidental shooting. Bay knows it could have been avoided if the gun owner had exercised gun safety.
"We are losing our children at a rapid rate because of gun violence, whether it's purposely or accidental," said Bay.