‘Turn yourself in’: Del Paso Heights community mourns 9-year-old fatally shot in drive-by

On Sunday morning, hours after gunshots rang out in Del Paso Heights at Mama Marks Park, the family of Makaylah Brent gathered to mourn her death.

The 9-year-old was killed Saturday afternoon in a drive-by shooting — and family members say the gunman missed their intended target, striking two children in the gunfire.

“It was another intended target,” said Amber Brent, the grandmother of the two girls. “My three family members just happened to be in that person’s way.”

Sacramento City Councilman Allen Warren, who personally knows the Brent family, corroborated this account. He said it was a tragic situation that took the life of an innocent bystander.

“This family will be altered forever now,” he said.

Simone Belton, the godmother of the 6-year-old girl who was shot, stood under a wide awning at Mama Marks Park on Sunday, flanked by dozens of community members who showed up to grieve with the family.

“They were in the wrong place at the wrong time,” Belton said. “But whoever did it saw those babies there before they did the shooting, so that’s just — I don’t even have words for that.”

In all, four people were shot: A man who fled the park and took himself to a hospital, a woman who was taken to a hospital in critical condition and the two children, both found by police suffering gunshot wounds.

The 6-year-old is expected to survive. Makaylah, however, was pronounced dead at the scene, which had been the gathering spot for the Brent family and loved ones, when the killer’s car pulled up.

“We had no intention of our babies being killed here,” Amber said. “This is not something everybody plans for.”

Bradley Dean Brent Jr., the grandfather of the two girls and the father of the woman who was shot, said he already suspects the identity of the shooter. He had just one message for them:

“Turn yourself in,” Bradley said.

Sacramento police officials said Saturday that they were looking into possible gang connections to the shooting, but were not clear on a motive. Investigators did not immediately have a description of any potential suspects. Police spokesman Officer Karl Chan said Sunday that no new information had been gathered regarding the shooting.

Sacramento Mayor Darrell Steinberg made a statement on the shooting Sunday morning, lamenting the loss of a youth to what he characterized as a “senseless act of violence.”

“The escalation of shootings here and across America is unacceptable,” Steinberg wrote. “We are working with Sacramento Police and our community leaders to step up our violence prevention efforts. Praying for peace and reconciliation in our community.”

Derrell Roberts, a North Sacramento-area activist and co-founder of the Roberts Family Development Center, an organization that serves youth in underserved communities, warned that violence often begets violence.

“When this cycle starts, we’re just hoping it ends quickly,” Roberts said. “You don’t know why it starts, but all of a sudden it starts. One person gets shot, or shot at, another person retaliates.”

It’s a tough cycle to stop, Roberts said, and community members are rightly frustrated when violence occurs. But the root issue to Roberts is a lack of investment in long-term preventative measures at the city and county level.

But activist Mervin Brookins, who works with Brother-to-Brother, a group that helps mentor high-risk youth, said that Del Paso Heights isn’t going to give in to despair.

“The community is coming together not just to support the family, but to continue to build,” Brookins said.

Del Paso Heights so often is signified by “that ugly narrative” of violence, Brookins said, and although he is “heartbroken for the young lady and her family,” he is also “heartbroken for our community, which is striving to overcome the challenges that have plagued it for years.”

He said Del Paso Heights has made significant strides in recent years in tackling those challenges and it’s not going back. For now, all he and other community members can do is be there for the grieving family, in any way they can, knowing full well that there is nothing that can be done to fully heal the inflicted wound.

This story was originally published October 4, 2020 at 4:09 PM.