Tampa Police say there has been an increase in gun violence recently and released some alarming numbers Monday.

This weekend, a 14-year-old Richard Newton was shot and killed at a birthday party. Two other teens were hit and are recovering from their injuries.

“I just want justice for my son. He was 14, he didn’t deserve that," said Danielle Williams, Newton's mother. 

Police say this stemmed from a fight and that it's a tragic consequence of crime and violence in the community.

Dozens of people saw the shooting yet there haven't been any suspects. Williams said she hopes those witnesses talk to detectives.

“Would you come forward and just let the police know, I’d be grateful for that," she said. 

Tampa Police Chief Jane Castor said there’s one common problem in all these cases; conflicting stories, people afraid to talk, and she says it has to stop.

“What we need is the community to get angry about what’s happening in our backyard our kids are being killed and we’ve got to stop this,” Castor said.

The gun violence comparisons between this time period last year and this year are startling.

  • Aggravated batteries with a gun 22 from Jan 1 to Mar 23 last year 48 this year
  • Total gun offenses 164 last year 235 this year
  • Homicides 7 last year 13 this year
  • Guns stolen 52 last year 117 this year
  • Guns recovered 290 last year 338 this year
  • Accidental Shootings 0 last year 4 this year.

This recent wave of violence even has Hillsborough County School’s attention.

“We just can’t have this continue so the message we’re here in support of Chief Castor is to speak up we have to cooperate we have to make sure this comes to an end,” said Jeff Eakin.

Meanwhile, Councilman Frank Reddick said now is the time to have a community meeting to talk about this spike in violence. He wants to get community leaders together with school officials, even police to talk about how to stop the violence now.

Reddick said what's happening in his district, specifically Sulphur Springs, makes his stomach turn.

“You can’t sit on your porch and play domino without someone shooting you? It's sad. You can't go to a party, a teen party.... frustration boils over, someone has a gun there? It's sickening.”

But it's not just the violence that worries the councilman, it's the culture of secrecy surrounding the recent deadly shootings, that is making him put his foot down.

“This thing that goes in the black community, not to snitch. You can’t snitch on your brother, cant snitch on your sister. We need to change that," he said.

He's hoping a meeting this Monday with pastors, school and city leaders and law enforcement will help. Reddick said there's no magical way to end the issues facing Sulphur Springs but he says no one can afford to stand by and watch this happen anyone.

"We just can't continue to have more shootings, killing. It seems very rapid. Young person get killed at a birthday party? It doesn't make sense. Why do these young folks have guns? Where do they get the guns from?" he said.

Reddick's office has been flooded with phone calls from community members calling for action. But many are too scared to speak up themselves. No one would talk with us on camera about the recent violence because they fear for their own safety.

Reddick said next week's meeting is just a first step to something bigger.

“Hopefully, if we speak loud enough, and we can get that trust factor, we can get something accomplished,” Reddick said.

The city is still hammering out the details about this meeting.