Crime
Tennessee Makes Guns Legal in Playgrounds, Just a Day After Minnesota School Shooting
In the aftermath of yet another school shooting — this time in Minnesota, where children were left bleeding in church pews — Tennessee faced a choice.
We could have used that moment to pause, reflect, and take meaningful steps to protect our communities and our children.
Instead, our state made a different decision: to allow firearms in playgrounds and public parks.
This decision came almost immediately after tragedy struck in Minneapolis. While families there were still reeling, while children lay in hospital beds, and while parents were left trying to explain gunshot wounds to their other children, a panel of Tennessee judges struck down the law that banned guns from recreational spaces — the very places designed for children to feel safe.
This ruling came the very next day.
If that sounds like a cruel coincidence, it only deepens when we remember our own tragedy here at home.
Just two years ago, Tennessee endured the Covenant School shooting, where three children and three staff members were murdered.
That should have been the moment that changed everything for us. That should have been when the safety of children took precedence over politics and posturing.
But it didn’t. Instead of honoring those lives with meaningful action, our state has continued to move backwards — dismantling protections, loosening restrictions, and signaling once again that the lives of murdered children do not carry enough weight to warrant change.
Let me be clear: this is not about freedom. This is about how many children’s deaths we are willing to tolerate while pretending it is.
I am done with performative grief. I am done pretending this is normal. And I am done accepting the idea that the slaughter of children is simply the “cost” of living in this country.
For 26 years, we have endured this cycle of violence, grief, and inaction. Enough. It is time to do something.
Crime
16-year-old Khyon Smith-Tate found shot to death inside Chipotle bathroom on edge of Temple University’s campus in North Philadelphia
PHILADELPHIA — A 16-year-old boy was fatally shot inside the bathroom of a Chipotle restaurant near Temple University’s campus in North Philadelphia on Monday afternoon, police said, as students and staff returned for the first day of the Spring 2026 semester.
The shooting occurred at approximately 5:00 p.m. inside the Chipotle located in the 1100 block of West Montgomery Avenue, on the ground floor of The View at Montgomery apartment complex. The building is situated near Temple University’s Student Center and TECH Center.
Police later identified the victim as Khyon Smith-Tate, a North Philadelphia resident. Philadelphia Police Chief Inspector Scott Small said Smith-Tate was found with a gunshot wound to the chest and was pronounced dead at 5:24 p.m.
Temple University President John Fry and Vice President for Public Safety and Chief of Police Jennifer Griffin issued a joint statement following the incident:
“The loss of life to gun violence is a profound tragedy, and there are no words that can make sense of it. Our thoughts are with the victim’s family and loved ones.”
According to investigators, Smith-Tate and another minor entered the restaurant and requested access to the restroom. Chief Inspector Small said the shooting is believed to have occurred inside the bathroom.
Moments later, employees discovered Smith-Tate suffering from a gunshot wound. Police recovered one spent shell casing from a semiautomatic weapon inside the restroom.
Although the victim’s last known address was approximately eight blocks from the scene, authorities have not indicated what brought him to the location or what led to the shooting.
At the time of the incident, the restaurant was crowded, and multiple individuals inside the business were detained briefly for questioning. However, police said they have not yet obtained any statements from witnesses who reported hearing a gunshot.
A person of interest was taken into custody several blocks from the scene shortly after the shooting, but Chief Inspector Small said that individual’s involvement remains unclear.
As of Tuesday, police confirmed that no arrests have been made and no motive has been established.
Investigators believe Smith-Tate entered the restroom with another minor, though the whereabouts of that individual remain unknown.
Police are also seeking information about three possible suspects, described as teenagers carrying backpacks.
Chief Inspector Small noted that the area is equipped with numerous surveillance cameras, which detectives are reviewing as part of the ongoing investigation.
Authorities are asking anyone with information related to the incident to contact the Philadelphia Police Department.