Caught In The Crosshairs:  Gun Violence Takes Its Toll On Black Community

By Robert J. Hansen | OBSERVER Staff Writer Kejion Starkes was driving from an ex-girlfriend’s house in Natomas in February when someone fired a gunshot into his car, causing him to crash into the fence of a nearby school. Starkes was killed around the corner from where his ex-girlfriend lives, according to Starkes’ mother, Tasha Cousins. Starkes, 26, never owned a gun. Nor was he in a gang. He was a signed music artist and loving father, brother and son, Cousins says. Cousins never thought her family would fall victim to gun violence. The greater fear was that her son would take his own life during his teens as he struggled with his mental health. “The last five years of his life he was doing amazing,” Cousins says. “He told me that he didn’t want to die anymore. He said ‘I want to live.’ All his friends were dying around him and he was right at home on the couch.” Starkes had just given his new girlfriend a Valentine’s Day basket, which he displayed on social media about 10 hours before he was killed. His death reflects the devastating problem facing Sacramento’s African American community when it comes to gun...