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'They wouldn't have shot their mom or dad,' advocates speak against teen violence
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BATON ROUGE — After learning of the shooting death of 49-year-old Randall Holmes, another Baton Rouge family is stepping forward to share how their family endured a similar situation and offer support to the grieving family.
This past weekend, Holmes died after Baton Rouge Police said an argument between a group of teenagers escalated into a shooting. As previously reported, Holmes' family said their loved one attempted to diffuse the situation but ended up being shot by one of the individuals in the group. So far, police have made no arrests and said the investigation is ongoing.
In March 2025, the family of Corey Breaux said they suffered a similar shooting. Lorena Breaux, Corey Breaux's wife, said her husband tried to intervene on a group of teens bullying their daughter. One of the teens pulled out a gun, Lorena Breaux said, and shot Corey Breaux multiple times.
Corey Breaux survived the shooting.
"It's hard to explain that feeling until you've had it. I pray to God that no one ever knows because no one deserves to know," Lorena Breaux said.
Two weeks ago, a judge sentenced 19-year-old Jerry Huggins to 13 years in prison for the shooting.
So, when Lorena Breaux and her husband heard about Holmes dying in a shooting involving teenagers, the similar circumstances compelled her to reach out.
"If me and my husband sharing our story leads to one less teen picking up a gun and choosing communication, then we'll continue to share it," she said.
In the first six months of the year, BRPD says they have arrested more than 200 juveniles in cases related to violent crimes, including 40 firearm charges and three charges of murder.
"They're teens right now. Imagine when they get older, imagine what this is going to do, when there's more access, when they have more freedom, when they can legally purchase some of these items," Lorena Breaux said.
Lorena Breaux wants harsher sentences for teens convicted of violent acts, noting the latest numbers alarm her. As for charging parents for their children's behaviors, she says, it would be difficult because parents can raise their children to be law-abiding citizens and the child could still be swayed to violence by outside influences.
She did add that she would like to see more leadership by parents, teens and public officials to encourage teens to use intervention strategies.
"Those parents of those teens should have known where they were, what they were doing. They should have been the ones to intervene. They wouldn't have shot their mom or dad. They wouldn't have done that. Because they didn't know Mr. Holmes, they opened fire," Lorena Breaux said.
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