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SACRAMENTO, California (KCRA) — A 23-year-old man who was among five people stabbed in Old Sacramento early Saturday morning is recovering and reflecting on the incident, while a local youth advocate calls for more community support to prevent violence.
“I’m glad that I’m still alive. I’m glad that it could have been worse and I’m okay,” said Avontae Brown.
Brown, who hopes to go home soon, shared that his recovery is progressing.
“I’m recovering pretty well. I’m feeling okay. Just a little bit of pain I’ve been getting like medicine for and it’s been helping,” he said.
Brown described the chaotic moment when the violence unfolded.
“I was talking to some people and then I think a fight broke out and next thing I knew – it was kind of close to me – somebody walked up and I got stabbed and then I didn’t fully process it. I just remember that I put my hand on my side and I saw a lot of blood and I kind of just started freaking out,” Brown said.
Brown is a member of Voice of the Youth, a Sacramento organization that mentors young people. After learning about the stabbing, Berry Accius, the organization’s founder, said the incident highlights the need for greater investment in youth.
“When you see moments like this, the lack thereof investment just shows you the cause and effect, and now here with five young people being stabbed,” Accius said.
Accius believes that preventing violence requires more than police intervention and starts with providing young people with safe spaces and tools to manage conflict.
“An idle mind is a devil’s playground. I mean, you don’t have young people having a place to congregate. There’s not enough parental guidance at all. A lot of our young people are not learning how to be able to cope better, and they’re exposed to so much violence and so much aggression on our social media platforms,” Accius said.
An 18-year-old suspect is in custody on five counts of assault with a deadly weapon. The investigation into the stabbings remains active, and the suspect is expected in court on Tuesday.
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