WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. — Natasha Aguilar did not expect to be in crossfire Friday while picking her daughter up at Parkland Park, next to Parkland High School.
"There was a group of kids off toward the back end of the parking lot," said Aguilar. "The group of kids started acting very aggressively, started yelling and just throwing up their hands and I looked in the opposite direction, in the direction of the school, and there were a group of kids walking from the school toward the park and they also started yelling, start taking off their shirts and putting on bandanas, acting very aggressively.”
Then, she said, a fight started, and shortly after, shots were fired.
“Kids were running everywhere. Cars would not move," said Aguilar. "So I’m beeping my horn at all these cars to get out of the way. Cars were lined up on both sides of the street trying to get into the school and my daughter finally answers the phone and I had her on the phone, I was telling her to run the opposite direction and as I was telling her that, more shots (were fired)."
According to Aguilar, her daughter eventually got to the car and they drove off. Her younger child was also in the vehicle the entire time.
"My kid is in the car, my five-year-old son is in the car with me, what if a bullet comes through the car and hits my child? What if a bullet hits one of those kids? What if the bullet hits my daughter when all she was trying to do was get in my car?" said Aguilar.
Winston-Salem Police say no one was hurt in the incident but have yet to find the person who fired the shots. It's unclear if that person is a student or has any connection to the school.
"It's sad because I actually went to this school and I don't remember coming to this school and being afraid for my life," said Aguilar. "And today as an adult I come to the school and I'm afraid for my life.
Aguilar said her daughter is not doing well since the shooting and Aguilar is considering withdrawing her.
“She didn’t know if her friends were alive," said Aguilar. "She had no idea if one of her friends had been shot.”
She said she wants more accountability for city and school officials, especially after other events at Parkland, including a student being found with a gun.
"(We need) more police presence, metal detectors, more parent involvement, more laws regulating guns," said Aguilar. "I'm sorry, I said it. Everyone has the right to guns if you do so responsibly.”
And she said parents also have a responsibility.
"These parents that are letting their child obtain a firearm need to be held accountable," said Aguilar.
Aguilar said she will continue to use her voice to hopefully enact change. She said if that means more resources for the Forsyth County Sheriff's Office, she's willing to help.
“More just needs to be done, more needs to be done to protect the children," said Aguilar, "because they are our future.”