‘He was a baby’: Hundreds pay their respects to Jaiden Brown, victim of Easter Sunday mass shooting

ALLEGHENY COUNTY, Pa. — As hundreds came to Brown’s viewing to pay their respects, the community is still healing from the trauma of the mass shooting on the North Side and the loss of two 17-year-olds – Jaiden Brown and Mathew Steffy-Ross.

Cathy Welsh is a family friend and has known Jaiden Brown’s mom since before he was born.

“He was her prized possession,” Welsh tells Channel 11. “It was him and her.”

Rosalyn Berry lost two children to gun violence. Her grandchildren are cousins with Jaiden Brown.

“This is a young child that will never graduate, never see life,” Berry said. “He was just beginning. He was a baby.”

Karol Stoudemire lost her husband to senseless gun violence while he was at work. She also came to help lift up Jaiden Brown’s family.

“Losing a loved one is a punch in the gut and a pain that will never leave,” Stoudemire tells Channel 11.

As family and friends began their goodbyes to Jaiden Brown, the North Side community came together for a meeting about the recent gun violence. We heard from traumatized neighbors who say they woke up to screaming, the piercing sound of gunfire and kids lying on the ground motionless. Neighbors say this was a secretive party and the address wasn’t known until right before.

Police say solving this case is top priority and they’re combing through a ton of evidence to find the shooters. Lee Schmidt, Pittsburgh’s Public Safety Director tells Channel 11 detectives are working tirelessly day and night.

“We’ve had the community send in a lot of videos, which is great, but it also takes a lot of time to go through to look for all the details and information,” Schmidt says.

Parents want to send a strong message to teens who get their hands on a gun they shouldn’t have.

“Once that bullet leaves the chamber, there is no going back,” Welsh said. “There is no going back. You’re forever responsible. You can try to run for it, you can try to hide.”

Pittsburgh’s police chief will hold a press conference at 10 a.m. Friday with the ATF and the U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Pennsylvania about the results of a task force on juvenile gun crime.

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