'This violence needs to stop': Teen football player fatally stabbed in Ahwatukee

Family, friends and educators have spent the past few days reeling over the sudden death of 15-year-old Jaylen Reeves who was stabbed early Saturday morning in Ahwatukee after getting into a fight with another group of minors.

Phoenix police responded to a residential neighborhood near Lakewood Parkway and 38th Street shortly after 3 a.m. after receiving calls about a teenage boy being stabbed during a fight between two groups of minors, said Sgt. Brian Bower.

Responding officers found Reeves with a critical stab wound. Reeves was rushed to the hospital where he was treated for life-threatening injuries but died later that evening. No suspects were in custody as of Monday afternoon.

Bower encouraged anyone with information about the stabbing or anyone who possesses surveillance footage that may have captured the incident to contact Silent Witness at 480-WITNESS (480-948-6377) or 480-TESTIGO (480-837-8446) for Spanish.

Stabbing leaves family, friends in heartbroken disbelief Reeves' father, Brian Kelly, told The Arizona Republic on Monday that juvenile violence needed to be addressed in the community.

"The violence needs to stop," Kelly said. "This happens too much. These kids are too young."

Kelly recalled his son being a kind and loving sibling to his brothers.

"He's a great big brother," Kelly said. "He's got three little brothers. His youngest brother is too young to even know what's going on."

Reeves' family set up a GoFundMe to assist with funeral costs, which has raised over $16,000 as of Monday afternoon.

"Jaylen was known for his dedication on the football field and his selflessness off it," the GoFundMe reads. "He was always the first to offer a helping hand, whether to a teammate, a friend in need, or a stranger. His generous spirit touched everyone who knew him."

The family noted that Reeves' opted to become an organ donor before he died, meaning his death would likely save the lives of others.

"Thank you for helping us celebrate and remember Jaylen — a young athlete, a giving soul, and a hero who gave so much, both on and off the field."

Mountain Pointe football coach Eric Lauer said he started receiving calls about the stabbing Saturday morning. Lauer said Reeves was a running back on the school's junior varsity team as a sophomore and described the team as a "tight-knit program."

He said the school is providing counselors to students and football players who are grieving over Reeves' death.

"On most days, football can help get you through this hard stuff," Lauer said. "We'll get through it and support the family the best we can moving forward."

Lauer spent time with Reeves' family at the hospital Monday morning to offer his support.

"The last thing you want to do is bury your child," Lauer said. "It's been a big shock to the family."

He was one of 200 people who came to show their respects during Reeves' memorial.

"These are people who have directly touched him, and he has directly touched them, so that says a lot about him," Reeves' grandfather, Rene Reeves, said.

Neighbors didn't hear a disturbance Neighbors expressed how strange it was that they didn't hear anything early that morning. Kim Bryant said that her dog customarily barks whenever she hears outside noise and was silent despite the open window.

When Bryant learned what had happened, she thought it was "really weird" none of them had heard anything.

"I've lived here almost 20 years. It's absolutely shocking what has happened here," Thomas Smekal, father to two local high school graduates, said. "It's the most safe and tranquil environment."

Though he and his children didn't know Reeves personally, he said that his "heart and love goes to the victims and families."

"I just pray for closure, that's all I can say," Smekal said.

Reeves' family and friends listened to music and comforted one another Monday at the second memorial service at the site where he had been attacked.

Reeves' mother called her father, frantic, at 5:30 a.m. on Monday. She told him Jaylen had been stabbed multiple times and she did not know if he was going to make it.

"He was just coming out to be with his girlfriend. He was just coming to sit on the benches to chill out. That's what I know," Rene Reeves said. "Another group came up, and that's when the problem ensued. All that we maybe do know is that one of kids maybe had a Desert Vista shirt on, but that doesn't mean anything. We really don't know anything."

Reeves added that though there was competition between the rival sports teams, he had never seen anything to indicate anything like the type of violence Jaylen experienced.

"All schools — Desert Vista, Mountain Pointe, Centennial — loved the kid. He was extremely respectful," Rene Reeves added.

The grandfather painted a picture of a respectful and thoughtful athlete who was a role model to his family and friends.

As Jaylen's younger brothers ran around the memorial by the lake, Rene Reeves said, "See how respectful these kids are. He was the same kind of guy."

Jaylen's aunt, Reba Reeves, echoed her father's sentiments, speaking of Reeves as their "golden boy," the empathetic center of their family.

"There's of course talk, but talk isn't facts," Reba Reeves said, "As impatient as we are we just have to wait. Eventually the truth will come out and those responsible will be held accountable, and we are waiting for that day."

"My sister has mentioned multiple times that Jaylen was our glue, and he will continue to be forever and always," Jaylen's aunt continued, "Jaylen deserved the world, and I am so disheartened that heonly got to spend 15 years here."

The other night my uncle expressed to me, "God wants the best of us," Rene Reeves said, "That's what God got."