More than a dozen children, 16 years old and younger, in the metro area have been killed since October 2014.
The latest victim, a 1-year-old boy, was shot late Tuesday evening in a house on the 5900 block of East 84th St., just south of Swope Park.
According to police, a relative entered the home and discovered the bodies - the baby and two adults.
"These babies deserve to be here. They had a purpose in life. Who are you to shorten their life? Who are you to shorten their life? That is not right. We will never get the potential to see what these children would have become," said Roslyn Temple, with the crime activist group Mothers in Charge.
RELATED: Learn more about every homicide in the Kansas City area in 2015
Since October 2014, thirteen children have been killed. 41 Action News records show eight children were shot, three children were beaten, one child was struck by a car and the death of another child remains a mystery.
"We're still grieving. We're still hurting. That's a life that was just snatched from us. He didn't get to graduate, his birthday is Friday," said Marcia Purefoy.
Purefoy's grandson, Amorian Hale, was shot and killed in a drive-by earlier this year. At the time, police said the gunman fired more than 20 rounds.
"It doesn't seem real. A baby asleep in the home where they should be safe, gone," she said. "We need to put our heads together about what can we do against this crime because lives matter."
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Ariel Rothfield can be reached at ariel.rothfield@kshb.com.
