As gun violence looms over Pennsylvania youth, local organizations offer safe spaces

Trevor was 14 years old when he bought his first gun from a friend.

Although he is like any other teenager — he likes Sprite, playing Monopoly and dreams about owning a Mercedes — he has lived in constant fear that someone could take his life.

"Being around the wrong type of people just brought problems," Trevor said. "People would fight, and I'm not the biggest. Everybody was bigger than me, and somebody might have a gun. That makes me nervous and anxious and that makes me wanna grab a gun, too."

A month after his 14th birthday, Trevor was arrested for gun possession.

"I felt threatened, so I just had to do what I thought I had to do at the time," Trevor said.

Firearms, including homicides, suicides and unintentional injuries, are the and teens. Gun injuries were the leading cause of death among children and teens, ages