Gunshot survivor says record Louisville violence is more than just numbers

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- A gunshot survivor is speaking out in an effort to put a face behind the record violence in Louisville.

Victoria Gwynn was shot in the leg in a hail of gunfire at Ballard Park on June 7.

"It's just, 'Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!' -- like back-to-back," said Gwynn as she recalled the incident. "I hear the bullets just flying past me."

Gwynn's leg was shattered and her friend, Dejuan Coward, was badly wounded.

"He told me he got shot in the head and to call police," she said.

Coward later died at UofL Hospital.

"My whole world just turned upside-down all over again," said Gwynn.

Indeed, it was not Gwynn's first encounter with violence. Her brother, Christian, was shot and killed in 2019.

"I lost my brother to a bullet," she said. "Never would I have thought I would get shot myself."

Gwynn's mother, Krista, said she and husband Navada raced to the scene after Victoria texted them. They were able to see their daughter as she was being loaded into an ambulance.

"I give thanks to the Lord for saving my child, but why another one of my kids?" said Krista.

Victoria is now going through physical therapy. She said the activity is also good for her mental health.

"Going through recovery is not easy. I'm not OK," she said. "Some people might think … I got shot but I'm not dead. I'm still walking and breathing, but on inside it hurts."

Gwynn is now becoming a mentor with the Future Healers project, a violence prevention partnership between UofL Health and the Christopher 2X Gamechangers organization.

She said she wants to offer hope to youngsters like her sister.

"I don't want my little sister to be scared to go outside and play with her friends or do anything in life because she's scared something's going to happen to her," said Gwynn. "I just want to take all of that away."

Victoria said she is telling her story so that Louisville understands the epidemic of violence is more than just record-breaking numbers.

"Everywhere I turn around I'm losing my friends," she said. "And it's like -- for what?"

On Thursday, the Gwynns also appealed to lawmakers in Frankfort to help stop the violence, as the entire family tries to turn its pain into positive action.