CINCINNATI — A shooting survivor said she feels like a prisoner in her West End home, begging city leaders for help Thursday.
"I can't take (any) more," Renay Jackson said. "I can't take another thing. I'm one step away from crashing out."
Three months ago, gunfire outside Jackson's apartment made her a violent crime victim. A shooter still wanted by police targeted someone else and Jackson was an innocent bystander, Cincinnati police said.
Now, the mother who lives on disability is desperate to move but feels forgotten.
"I just feel like it's OK she was shot," Jackson said. "Oh well, she is still here, f*** her. That's how I'm feeling. Nobody said, 'Are you OK? Here are some resources.' It's like innocent people who get injured in stuff like this, there's no help for us. I get a once-a-month check, but by the time I pay my bills here and there, I'm left with nothing for myself. So even if (a landlord) did say give us rent, $500 for this deposit (to move), I can't. I don't have it. The rent office told me I had to go on a waiting list if I want to move."
Her public housing landlords offered one move, Jackson said. They suggested she move two doors down in the same complex.
"I think that will put me more in harm's way because when me and the detective knocked on that door and talked to that grandma (who lived there), that grandma literally told us, 'Well they called and said they are going to kill me too,'" Jackson said. "So what the hell y'all think y'all are going to put me in there for? This lady was 90-something years old. If they are going to kill her, they don't have a care."
Jackson said she feels trapped and afraid, unable to sleep.
"Nothing has changed besides my medication," Jackson said holding up a clear backpack full of prescriptions for anxiety and other disorders suffered as a result of the shooting. "You don't know who (the shooters are). You don't know who (is) affiliated with them. I know I'm on the verge of a mental breakdown and I shouldn't. But, like I said, when you don't have family, can't trust friends, it's hard."
During a July 7 interview with WCPO 9 News about his plan to calm violence in Cincinnati, Mayor Aftab Pureval expressed concern for Jackson's situation and suggested some of the record $8 million dollars his administration moved into the city's Human Services Fund would help crime victims and witnesses.
"First off, my heart goes out to the survivors of crime," Mayor Pureval said during the interview. "It is unacceptable, the crime in our city and cities across the country. We are focused on one thing and that is stopping the violence. Supporting survivors, supporting witnesses is absolutely part of the strategy. (Interim Cincinnati Police Chief Teresa) Theetge and I talk about that all the time, which is why we made such a historic investment in our human services fund. But it goes beyond that. We've been very specific to fund organizations that are helping interrupt the violence."
The United Way, which administers money from the Human Services Fund, said the new money has not been appropriated yet. However, they said the 211 community database can help.
"At this point, financial assistance resources are very limited," Amy Weber, director of knowledge center and investments for the United Way of Greater Cincinnati, said in an email. "Despite federal resources and local public support, the demand continues to outpace the resources."
The United Way recommended trauma recovery and victim services offered through Seven Hills Neighborhood Houses and Talbert House.
Jackson is hopeful help is coming soon. She set up her own GoFundMe to make sure.
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