NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WKRN) – In the first three weeks of the new year, News 2 has been tracking homicides happening within Nashville.

Nearly half of the homicides that have been reported by the Metro Nashville Police Department involve teens between the ages of 14 and 19. Among those is Michael Adams — or Chase, as known by friends and family.

“Anger, upset. Just, I was hoping it was him walking through the door and not somebody else,” remembered Brandie Green, as she thought back to the moment she found out her son was shot and killed. “[The] hardest part is having to walk in that bedroom where my son’s supposed to be at and knowing that he’s not there and waiting for the door to open and for him to come in, and it don’t happen.”

Green and her children sat surrounded by photos, each one representing a memory of the good times, as they continue to grieve.

“I’ve raised my kids to be real close, and this has taken a lot out of us,” Green said.

Metro police were called to Salam Mason Drive and 26th Avenue North, near a baseball field. Investigators say Adams was found dead in a yard, with shell casings near him. According to the press release, detectives believe he was running away when he was shot and collapsed in the yard.

Nearby, 14-year-old Cordarion Hall was found with a gunshot wound and was taken to Vanderbilt University Medical Center for treatment. Days later, he was also pronounced dead at the hospital.

“Whenever we hear about a youth that has lost their life, it is devastating, it’s a loss for the entire community,” said Judge Shelia Calloway with the Juvenile Court system.

Calloway, along with her staff, has been dedicated to changing the lives of youth that come through their system. As the year kicks off, she spoke with News 2 about the goals for her department — one of those being opening a new Juvenile Justice Center that would operate under the name “Nashville Youth Campus for Empowerment,” or N.Y.C.E.

“One of the things I would love to be able to accomplish this year is to make sure that we are addressing the issue with guns, particularly guns in the hands of youth,” said Judge Calloway. “One of the things we are working with the police department, with the District Attorney’s Office, with the school system and making sure we’re addressing the issue of guns. We just really want to do the most that we can to keep guns out of the hands of our youth.”

On Tuesday, Jan. 24, Metro Nashville Police reported 81 guns have been stolen from vehicles in Nashville this year. The total number of guns stolen this year in Davidson County is 94, meaning 86% of guns stolen so far in 2023 have been taken from automobiles.

Last year, 1,378 were stolen from vehicles in Nashville, according to police.

“Youth will take an opportunity if they see one, to explore what they don’t know, and of course, we know that dangerous things can happen when guns and weapons get in the hands of youth that are not equipped to handle them, and the impact that, that weapon can have,” said Jennifer Wade, court administrator for Davidson County Juvenile Court.

The Adams family is hoping to raise money for a funeral service. They have set up a GoFundMe to help, or they ask donations to be dropped off or phoned into the Spring Hill Funeral Home and Cemetery in Madison.