Where Florida’s Gun Violence Exacts Its Biggest Toll on Black and Latino Children

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Just west of the St. Johns River, which divides this sprawling city racially and economically, 2-year-old A’mahri Robinson was murdered in his mother’s arms. Ladonna Johnson was rocking A’mahri to sleep in March when he was shot in the head with a gun she kept for protection. A’mahri loved going outdoors and taking rides in his pull-along wagon. His mother called the toddler “sweet” and “affectionate.” When he was around, she said, “you just felt love.” The child was close with Steven Dodson Jr., his mother’s boyfriend, who had reached for the gun during an argument. Dodson, 21, in June pleaded guilty to murder and aggravated child abuse and was sentenced to life in prison. A’mahri died in one of Florida’s most violent places for children: Jacksonville. This city has three ZIP codes that rank among the 10 worst in the state for firearm injuries involving children. Two-year-old A’mahri Robinson was murdered while in his mother’s arms in March. (Ladonna Johnson) Every year, hundreds of children are hospitalized in Florida with gunshot wounds, and overwhelmingly, they come from a tiny number of ZIP codes, an exclusive analysis of hospital data by KFF Health News a...