LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- As Louisville continues to struggle with gun violence, statistics show the city's shootings are the result of gang and group violence. That's why there's a new partnership between the mayor and Kentucky's newly-elected attorney general. 

Attorney General-elect Russell Coleman will be working with Mayor Craig Greenberg and other city officials to strengthen the Group Violence Intervention (GVI) initiative. The program targets gang members in an attempt to show them how gun violence affects far more people than those who were shot. 

Since the program launched in 2020, Louisville has seen more than 610 homicides and close to 2,000 shootings where the victim survived. Just this year, nearly 150 people have died by homicide.

"We're standing in a city that's lost almost 150 of its residents this year," Coleman said. "Moms and dads — in a bloodletting — we've seen that must be tackled with a greater sense of urgency and collaboration."

GVI organizers have been meeting with young people who are considered likely to be violent, hoping that conversations with known gang members in middle and high school will turn their lives around and keep them out of jail.

Nineteen teens involved in street life attended the most recent meeting, the largest group since GVI launched.

Sherita Smith is one of many moms grieving the loss of a loved one due to gun violence. Her son, Tyree Smith, was killed in a drive-by shooting near the intersection of Dr. W.J. Hodge and Chestnut streets in September 2021 as he waited for a bus to take him to Eastern High School. Smith was not the intended target. Two other teens were also shot that day but survived. 

"He was everything you could ever want in a child," Smith said. "He was such a good kid. He worked. He played sports. He went to school and got good grades."

The 16-year-old's senseless killing gripped Louisville. 

Smith will never forget the last time she heard Ty's voice.

"He gave me a call at 6:18 and was like 'Mom! I'm shot! Get here!'" Smith said.

It's a day that has haunted her ever since.

"I don't want anyone else to go through my pain," she said. 

Her story is one of many tragedies that Louisville officials have pushed to the forefront of young gang members' minds through the GVI program.

"The bottom line is our kids are killing kids, and we've got to find a way to fix that," said David James, Louisville's deputy mayor for emergency services, adding that GVI is a needed deterrent.

"Thirty-percent of all of our homicides in the city of Louisville are either by gang or group violence," James said.

GVI has been criticized for moving slowly, but Smith believes it's making a difference.

"A few of them had tears in their eyes," Smith said. "I think the next time they have one, it'll be more kids. It's never too late to change."

James said GVI has helped keep more than 140 offenders from committing more crimes but, ultimately, fighting gun violence and saving innocent lives starts at home.

"Sometimes, you have to know what your child is doing," he said. "Sometimes, you have to tell them no."

Smith said youth need to be constantly reminded "if you don't stop, there's gonna be consequences. You don't want to spend the rest of your life behind bars."

Related Stories:

Copyright 2023 WDRB Media. All Rights Reserved.Â