The family of a 14-year-old girl gunned down at a Texas playground wants to understand why a 13-year-old classmate allegedly felt the need to kill her. Anaya Zachary received fatal gunshot wounds at a playground at her Baytown apartment complex on March 21, 2025. The shooting reportedly stemmed from an altercation earlier in the day, and tragically ended in death.
Per ABC 13, Anaya and the alleged shooter both attended Baytown Junior Middle School in the Goose Creek Consolidated Independent School District. ABC 13 reported that police believe the shooting was the result of an earlier incident, possibly on the school bus. The suspect allegedly showed up at the family’s apartment complex later in the day with a gun.
Sonya Stanford, Anaya’s godmother, shared terrifying details with the news outlet. “They say he went home and put on all black, and put on a black mask and called my baby’s name and shot my baby four times,” she shared.
Stanford, who’s been caring for Anaya for the past year, also shared photos of her with the news outlet, calling her a “sweet baby.”
Stanford added her dismay over the adults in the situation. “The little boy who did this, I’m not angry with you. I’m not upset with you, but I want you to know I forgive you,” she said, per ABC 13. “I say you (his parents) should have put your weapon up so your 13-year-old son wouldn’t have gotten this gun and shot this child.”
In a separate interview, Stanford told KPRC 2 that had she known about the issue earlier in the day, she would have handled it with the teen boy’s parents.
“If I knew there was an altercation, me being who I am again, I would’ve went to the little boy’s parents with Anaya to see if we can get this resolved because stuff like this occurs all the time, but this does not make any sense at all,” she said.
Joseph Zachary created an online fundraiser to help with Anaya’s final expenses. Thus far, it has raised nearly $400 of its $25,000 goal.
Donors shared words of encouragement with the family.
“GOD HAS GAINED ANOTHER ANGEL-because someone else child is BROKEN!!! Parents BROKEN!!! We will not have a future to look forward to if we don’t fix our Future Leaders of the world. We failed Evolution because we are going backwards we have to do better or there’s no future to look forward to. FACTS,” a donor wrote.
This person agreed, writing, “I’m so sorry for your lost I hope yall get recovery soon I’ve been thinking about these since it happened it’s sad because know I don’t even trust my kids to ride a bus and my daughter goes to the same school I just think all off these could’ve been solved another way with school counseling.”
The teen boy was taken into custody. What charges might be and who will face them remains under investigation, per ABC 13.
