One Lexington sees progress in reducing gun violence among youth, young adults

LEXINGTON, Ky. (ABC36 NEWS NOW) — A city-led initiative focused on reducing gun violence among youth and young adults is showing signs of progress, according to recent crime data.

One Lexington, a community-based effort launched in 2017, works to address the root causes of gun violence while building partnerships with local organizations, nonprofits, and schools.

The latest Lexington Police Department Crime Report for 2025 shows a reduction in both gun violence involving young adults and overall homicides compared to previous years, dating back to 2015.

Kenneth Payne, the crisis response coordinator for One Lexington, says the progress is encouraging, but community involvement remains critical.

“Go out there, just go to them,” Payne said. “I think oftentimes we feel just talking about it, spreading the word or doing the work somewhere else, people will just see it and they’ll be drawn to it, but that’s really not the case.”

Payne says while the data points to improvement, those numbers don’t always reflect the reality for families who have lost loved ones.

“At the end of the day, there’s families that means nothing to them because they lost someone,” Payne said. “Of course, we know the data informs us of progress, assesses the work, but the biggest piece for us is our ability to support grassroots organizations, nonprofits that are on the ground doing the work.”

One Lexington was created with support from Linda Gorton and has continued expanding its presence throughout the community. Payne says gun violence affects more people than many realize.

“People who it may not directly affect, oftentimes — and it’s probably a natural thing — if it’s not at our front door, we don’t care too much about it,” Payne said. “But if it’s happening in your city, it’s an issue for you as well, and how can you help?”

Payne says ignoring problems within the community only creates further barriers and encourages people to take part in the solution.

“Continue to have those conversations and break down those barriers,” he said. “This is something I want to be a part of, or this is something that’s an issue — even if it’s not happening in my area, it’s happening in the city.”

As part of its work, One Lexington collaborates with nonprofits and local schools through mentoring and intervention programs. Payne says the organization’s long-term goal is to better understand and address the underlying causes of gun violence.

“Our main focus — and it has been from the beginning — is the root causes of gun violence,” Payne said. “Is it lack of education, food insecurity, housing? Whatever it is, we’re trying to focus our attention on that and how we can address it for the communities experiencing the most violence.”

Payne says people don’t simply wake up wanting to commit crimes, and One Lexington is committed to understanding what leads to violence in order to prevent it.