Missionary Ridge hosts Night Out just days after a local teen was killed

Chattanooga, TN (WDEF) – The Scenic City is hosting the annual nationwide Night Out Event in neighborhoods all over our city, and it comes at a perfect time for Missionary Ridge; just days after our city’s latest homicide took the life of 19-year-old Kevin Albert.

Missionary Ridge came together for the event to connect with other neighbors, get to know and thank local police officers and talk about the issues concerning their neighborhood.

Doug Eckert president of the Missionary Ridge Neighborhood Association said gang related or not, last week’s shooting was just too close to home, "People look to try and separate themselves from violence anyway they can, but that’s not really the important thing here. The important thing is that no one deserves to be treated like that, and obviously when it happens in your neighborhood it’s personal for you too."

Friends and family members of Albert say the young teen’s death was a senseless crime that was completely out of the ordinary for that area.

"It was unbelievable like I didn’t think he was actually gone," said Ariel Poindexter, Albert’s cousin, "We just want justice for Kevin because we feel like all that was not cause for, like they didn’t have to kill him."

Missionary Ridge has hosted Night Out for more than 15 years now, and organizers say this is just the first step to keeping their neighborhood as safe as possible.