AFTERMATH USA TODAY

Neglectful parents, and neighbors who looked the other way, set the stage for Clai Lasher-Sommers’ stepfather to shoot her in the back when she was 13 years old.

Best friends Carmen Alegria and Angelica Soto did everything together — and that includes saving each other from a gunman on a rampage.

Michael Green was just 12 years old when someone opened fire and blasted him in the arm while he played basketball near his house. Police say he still lives down the street from the alleged shooter, who was never tried. 

 Javier Arango can’t remember a time when his life wasn’t immersed in violence. Born in conflict-ravaged Colombia, he moved to Oakland for refuge — only to be paralyzed by a bullet.

 At 23 years old, Layla Bush was excited to work her first full-time job after college. Then a politically motivated gunman opened fire at her work, killing one. She remembers that the shooter looked her in the eye, acknowledging what he was doing just before he pulled the trigger.

After attending the funeral of a friend, Ra’Shauna Brown was chatting with other mourners when a gunman opened fire, killing three. Police said the shooting was part of a nine-day rampage that began over a stolen bracelet.