Twin on the Street Code

“I have a story that you won’t believe. I am telling you, this is all real. I got shot multiple times on the streets of Southeast DC in 2003. It started off with my twin sister, we’re identical, getting in an argument with a little boy, a juvenile. He was probably 13 or 14-years-old. He disrespected her and called her a bitch. This was not in our neighborhood where we know everyone, but out in Southeast. The next day, we went back around that neighborhood to go gambling. We saw the little boy again and he looked at us and told his friend, ‘Fuck them. Fuck the both of them.’

“My sister went back to go argue with the little boy. They had words and I told my sister to leave that little boy alone. When I said, “Little boy.’ he jumped up off the steps and said, “I’ll show you little boy!” He ran into the house and got a gun. When he did that, one of his friends said, ‘Boy, you just got that gun and you be pulling it on everyone.’ He turned on us with the gun, but one of his friends grabbed it and stopped him. I was like, man, how did this get so serious all of the sudden? I was mad. I was heated. I said, 'This ain’t gonna go down like this.' I mean, who the fuck this little boy think he is? That little boy could not just do that and disrespect us. My friend who I was with said, ‘Don’t sweat it. I have more than one gun at my house.’ I didn’t want to kill the little boy. I wanted to show him that he couldn’t do what he just did and think it’s ok. I mean, he did that shit to me and I didn’t want him to do it to someone else.

“I went back around the alley where the little boy hung out. He was sitting on a car, rolling a joint. His back was turned and I put the gun to his head. He was scared as shit and started apologizing, saying he had no beef with me and my sister. I told him to stay the fuck out of our way. I said, 'We don’t know you and you don’t know us. We don’t have no beef with you. I am just showing you how easy it is to get you, too. You just pulled a gun on us for no reason at all. I am teaching you a lesson.' I turned around and walked away. The next day, I went back to the neighborhood to meet a friend, not even thinking about the little boy because I was passed that. I was talking with some friends and I saw the little boy come out of the alley. It was 100 degrees and he was wearing a long coat with a hood on. He kept his hands in his pockets. I was like, “Oh my God. I know what he’s getting ready to do. I ain’t no fool.’

“The little boy was anxious. I knew he was going to shoot me so I started running down the alley. All of the time I thought he was shooting at me, he was actually shooting in me. I only starting feeling the bullets when I heard someone say, ‘That crazy ass nigger is shooting her.’ I was shot three times in my left forearm. When I finally fell over, he came over to me. I said, ‘Look, I don’t know you and I have no beef with you. You shot me three times. Just turn around and walk away and I’ll do the same.’ He kept looking at me and I knew that he was getting ready to shoot me in my fucking head. So, I turned around and ran and held my head in case he tried to hit me there. He shot me in the head, but he took off my finger instead. He also shot me in the thigh and then in my back, my L1 vertebrae. I thought he was never going to run out of bullets. Finally, he just ran away and my friends came to help me. I could not move. I was paralyzed.

“I went to Howard University hospital on May 9, but did not go to surgery until May 11. I had DC Alliance insurance, but they would not do surgery on me that night or the next day. They waited until Medicaid kicked in on May 11. Man, I stayed fucked up for two whole days because of medical insurance. When I finally got Medicaid, I went to surgery and got back feeling in my right toe. We were celebrating, but I still could not walk so I had to go to therapy. But, God is good. They said he can make the paralyzed walk again and I am prime example. I was so determined that I wasn’t going to live my life in a wheel chair. I went through a lot, but I can smile about it now. I am happy this happened to me and not my twin. She would not have survived because I am much stronger than she is.

"You know, when I was in the hospital, the police came by telling me they knew who done shot me and wanted me to ID him, but I didn't tell them nothing. I said it was a drive by. You know, street code. Turns out that the little boy and two of his friends went out to Anacostia after he shot me up and shot five people, including three women who were just hanging out. They got caught and the little boy got 77 years. Sometimes I think that those people would have still been here had I told on him, but you know the street code. Knowing what I know now, I can say that I would have told on him, but, in truth, I know that I wouldn’t snitch. I just look at it as what I won’t do someone else might do or God will take care of. I didn’t even think about telling the police. I wasn’t scared or nothing, I just didn’t want no one to tell on me if I was in the same situation. It’s been like that on these streets for a long time. Didn’t I tell you I had a story for your ass.”