About one hundred people gathered on a damp Thursday evening at the Bulloch County Courthouse to share in the grief of the tragic loss of two children last week and to try to begin healing.
Nine-year-old Emily Grace Mayo was killed in a shooting incident May 27 in Brooklet Park. Four-year-old Landyn Wilkerson was killed by a gunshot at a Statesboro apartment on May 30.
“In my seven years of being mayor of this city, I've never seen incidents that have affected our community the way that these particular incidents have,” said Statesboro Mayor Jonathan McCollar as the opening speaker at Thursday’s vigil. “I think those of us that are parents, those of us that are lovers of faith and those of us that embrace community. These last days have really broken all of our hearts.
“The one thing that has not been missed in this moment is that both of these young people were loved tremendously by their families and their communities. And it's in this faith that we want to extend our hearts and our condolences to the families. And what we want to tell you that in this space that you are not alone. We are a community that is grieving with you. And as the days get longer, what we want to say is that we are a community that will continue to stand beside you.”
Brooklet Mayor Nicky Gwinnett shared a heartfelt message of his own.
“I just want to say that on that morning that Emily got up with that beautiful little spirit that she had, nobody in the Brooklet community had any idea that that day was going to end. And I feel like it was the same way with Landyn's family, as well. No one knew that this was going to happen.

“But we have to understand that all of these things are in God's hands. And ask you all to continue to pray for these families.”
May 30 shooting
Statesboro Police Chief Mike Broadhead said Wednesday that investigators are still looking into the incident where Wilkerson died May 30 after he shot himself with a loaded handgun he found in a residence at The Hamptons Statesboro apartment complex.
“While the investigation is still ongoing, the evidence suggests that the child was able to access an unsecured firearm and discharge it, fatally injuring himself,” SPD Capt. Jared Akins wrote in a release last week.
Broadhead said detectives are continuing to investigate the history of the firearm in particular.
“We will be investigating the background of the firearm itself,” Broadhead said. “Where it was purchased, who was the purchaser, who brought it into the apartment, how long has it been there. And then we have to really discuss who's ultimately responsible for securing it.”
At the conclusion of the investigation, the case file will be turned over to the Ogeechee Judicial Circuit’s District Attorney’s Office for review, the release stated.
In last week’s release, Akins said that SPD patrol officers and EMS personnel responded at 5:46 p.m. Thursday, May 30 to the apartment at complex on Rucker Lane, off South Main St.
“We received a call that a child had been shot,” Police Chief Mike Broadhead said. “There were several people in the apartment when officers arrived. The child was critically wounded. We do know the incident was entirely contained within the apartment.”
In his release, Akins wrote: “Upon arriving, officers immediately rendered aid to the child before turning him over to Bulloch EMS for transport to East Georgia Regional Medical Center. Sadly, despite all possible medical assistance, the child passed away at EGRMC.”

SPD detectives secured a search warrant and conducted interviews with all the people present in the apartment and with family members to determine the sequence of events that led to the child’s fatal gunshot.
Anyone with information on this case is requested to contact Senior Det. Eric Short at (912) 764-9911 or by submitting an anonymous tip through the SPD website https://statesboropd.com/ using the "Submit a Tip" link.