A man charged in connection with a shooting at a Greenwood store last week is asking citizens to work toward a solution for violence.
Xavien Lehaman, 31, of Greenwood, submitted a letter to the Commonwealth on Thursday.
Lehaman is a suspect in a shooting that occurred on July 1 at Hibbett Sports in the Greenwood West shopping center. One man was injured.
Lehaman was charged with one count of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon and is out on bond.
In a phone call on Friday, he declined to comment on details regarding the incident itself.
In his letter, he wrote that he wanted to express “great concern” for the violence. “However,” he wrote, “the goal should never be to point the blame. The goal should always be to work together to find a solution.”
He wrote that he is an African American father of three sons who is “no stranger to working hard to make an honest living.”
He also wrote: “As someone who has never been convicted of any crime, I believe highly in reputation and integrity. However, in a world with little regard for the lives of Black men, I also highly believe in defending myself against danger of any kind.”
The purpose of the letter, he wrote, is to encourage the citizens of Greenwood to “help find the solution by correcting ourselves and dealing with our behaviors before pointing the finger at the next person.”
“Leadership can only go so far behind an ink pen or keyboard,” he wrote. “We ALL have a role to play in our community, and we all have a right to protect ourselves from the eyes of danger. If you’re not doing anything to find a solution, you are a part of the problem.”
- Contact Kevin Edwards at 662-581-7233 or kedwards@gwcommonwealth.com.
