Avery Young

Avery Young, a 19-year-old Black / African American male from Phoenix, Arizona, was remembered by loved ones as a happy, respectful, and fun young man with a beautiful smile. Known as "AJ," he was deeply missed by his family and friends, who recalled how he could touch the lives of so many people. His aunt, Margaret Torres, spoke for a family devastated by his sudden loss.

Just after midnight on August 20, 2021, a burst of gunfire erupted in a business parking lot on the southeast corner of 43rd Avenue and Bethany Home Road in west Phoenix. According to Phoenix police, two small groups, totaling three adults and two teenagers, had arranged over social media to meet there for a transaction. Family members later stated the young men were there to sell shoes. At some point during the meeting, the situation escalated, and both groups drew guns and began shooting at one another. Investigators later determined that more than 20 rounds were fired in the exchange.

When officers arrived at the chaotic scene, they found three people suffering from gunshot wounds. All three were rushed to a local hospital, where two were pronounced dead. The third individual, a teenage boy, was listed in critical condition but was expected to survive. While investigating, detectives learned that two other adult men involved in the incident had taken themselves to a different hospital. One of those men was pronounced dead on arrival, while the other was not physically injured.

Police publicly identified the three people killed in the shootout as Avery Young, Victor Manuel Cruz, also 19, and 16-year-old Salvador Gomez Medina. Investigators cordoned off the parking lot to collect evidence and interview witnesses. The uninjured adult man who had gone to the second hospital was detained by police and taken into custody. A police spokesperson, Sgt. Andy Williams, stated that authorities believed all five people involved in the incident had been accounted for and that there was no further threat to the public. As of August 2021, the case remains unsolved.