"It could have been any of us" - Shanice Brookes went on night out in Sheffield and never returned
Shooting sent shockwaves across Sheffield
It could have been any of us.
Shanice Brookes went for a night out in Sheffield and never returned home.
In the prime of her life, the 30-year-old was enjoying time on one of the city's busiest party streets in the early hours of Bank Holiday Monday.
Shanice should have been safe. Sheffield was her home city. It was where she was raising her young son.
But Shanice did not return home.
Instead her life was cruelly cut short when she was shot dead outside a city centre bar.
Sheffield, like most big cities, has gun crime. But, in the main, gangs tend to be involved.
So, for an "innocent bystander" to be caught up in the crossfire is horrific and has sent shockwaves across the city.
For a gun attack to be carried out so brazenly in a busy city centre street, without a care in the world for who was at risk, is the stuff of nightmares.
I already spend the evenings my children are out in town counting the minutes until they are home.
It was fights, glassings and stabbings that I'd always worried about as they are the kind of incidents we hear about.
I'd never worrried about guns...until now.
It is beyond comprehension that a young woman with everything to live for could be robbed of her life on a night out.
Bar owners in Sheffield are also shocked at this escalation in the level of violence on the streets of the Steel City and have released statements in the wake of this gun attack.
They are obviously going to be worried about the knock-on effect of this shooting on the city centre.
There are bound to be a lot of people wondering whether it is safe to go into town at night.
It's time for South Yorkshire Police to take more action.
The reputation of our city is at stake here.
Police chiefs need to stand up and explain exactly what they are going to do to keep us all safe in the city centre.
Yes, they need to get those responsible for Shanice's death so that justice can be served.
But they need to go further and truly get a grip on gun crime now.
Shanice's death must not be in vain. It has to result in change.
We need to see more action, more arrests, more deterrents.
Shanice's young son deserves that.
As a city we also have to play our part.
If you know who carries guns or has access to them, now is the time to speak up.
As a city, we cannot afford for people to remain silent and protect those killing and maiming on our streets.
This has to end now.