Uploaded August 2026 | Updated September 2026, 3 weeks ago
A memorial is growing at an East Price Hill home where a 14-year-old boy was fatally shot, and some of his friends are standing vigil.
Rakeem Blair Jr. was shot on Warsaw Avenue near Ross on Aug. 18. His family said on Saturday that he had died from his injuries.
The suspect, who is still at large, used a supposedly vacant home on Warsaw to shoot Blair. Now, his memory is kept alive on its walls, windows and doors, courtesy of his friends on the block.
Friends Niko and David say the group is devastated and that they feel like they lost a little brother.
"We've been out here setting this up since about 10 o'clock in the morning after we got permission from his blood family to do this," said Niko. "He still is the funniest, energetic, always has something going on."
"He was just around everywhere, just chilling, being a little boy," David said.
Niko says Blair was coming home from boxing practice Tuesday when he was shot. Anidra Lindsey picks up the story from there; having heard the gunshot, she jumped out of her car to render CPR.
"I was yelling to the crowd of the kids to give me a shirt so I could apply pressure to his wound. So I immediately put the shirt around his head, and I was holding his head in my hand, and he spit up," Lindsey said.
She was helping Blair, a stranger to her, with another total stranger: Metro bus driver Briona Akins. Lindsey says she already teaches CPR and says it's disturbing to see what happened to Blair become normal. Most cars sped past his body that night, she says.
"I feel like we're not safe because people under 20, you know, dying younger and younger every day," she said. "If a lot of people knew CPR and had the courage to save someone's life, I think they would do it."
Lindsey says her own son was a victim of gun violence and she has been in touch with the Blair family over the past few days. She says Blair's mother will be starting a new life — as she puts it, "a life dealing with death."
Blair's family is also remembering the legacy he left behind. In a statement posted to their GoFundMe set up to raise money for Blair's funeral, Blair's aunt wrote:
"Rakeem was just a kid with his whole life ahead of him. He had dreams to chase, memories to make, and so much more life to live. Anyone who knew him knew he was energetic, playful, hard-headed, and respectful all at once. He had a personality you could never forget. He could make you laugh, test your patience, and then turn right around and show you just how big his heart was. ... He was a little hustler, always trying to make a dollar, whether he was selling car air fresheners or coming up with his next idea. At only 14 years old, he already had an entrepreneurial spirit and knew how to make something out of nothing. He was supposed to grow up, graduate, keep chasing his dreams, and make his family proud. Instead, we are now facing the painful reality of laying him to rest."
Police have not said whether they have a suspect in Blair's death. If you have any information that can help police, call Crime Stoppers at 513-352-3040.
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A memorial is growing at an East Price Hill home where a 14-year-old boy was fatally shot, and some of his friends are standing vigil.
Rakeem Blair Jr. was shot on Warsaw Avenue near Ross on Aug. 18. His family said on Saturday that he had died from his injuries.
The suspect, who is still at large, used a supposedly vacant home on Warsaw to shoot Blair. Now, his memory is kept alive on its walls, windows and doors, courtesy of his friends on the block.
Friends Niko and David say the group is devastated and that they feel like they lost a little brother.
"We've been out here setting this up since about 10 o'clock in the morning after we got permission from his blood family to do this," said Niko. "He still is the funniest, energetic, always has something going on."
"He was just around everywhere, just chilling, being a little boy," David said.
Niko says Blair was coming home from boxing practice Tuesday when he was shot. Anidra Lindsey picks up the story from there; having heard the gunshot, she jumped out of her car to render CPR.
"I was yelling to the crowd of the kids to give me a shirt so I could apply pressure to his wound. So I immediately put the shirt around his head, and I was holding his head in my hand, and he spit up," Lindsey said.
She was helping Blair, a stranger to her, with another total stranger: Metro bus driver Briona Akins. Lindsey says she already teaches CPR and says it's disturbing to see what happened to Blair become normal. Most cars sped past his body that night, she says.
"I feel like we're not safe because people under 20, you know, dying younger and younger every day," she said. "If a lot of people knew CPR and had the courage to save someone's life, I think they would do it."
Lindsey says her own son was a victim of gun violence and she has been in touch with the Blair family over the past few days. She says Blair's mother will be starting a new life — as she puts it, "a life dealing with death."
Blair's family is also remembering the legacy he left behind. In a statement posted to their GoFundMe set up to raise money for Blair's funeral, Blair's aunt wrote:
"Rakeem was just a kid with his whole life ahead of him. He had dreams to chase, memories to make, and so much more life to live. Anyone who knew him knew he was energetic, playful, hard-headed, and respectful all at once. He had a personality you could never forget. He could make you laugh, test your patience, and then turn right around and show you just how big his heart was. ... He was a little hustler, always trying to make a dollar, whether he was selling car air fresheners or coming up with his next idea. At only 14 years old, he already had an entrepreneurial spirit and knew how to make something out of nothing. He was supposed to grow up, graduate, keep chasing his dreams, and make his family proud. Instead, we are now facing the painful reality of laying him to rest."
Police have not said whether they have a suspect in Blair's death. If you have any information that can help police, call Crime Stoppers at 513-352-3040.
_______________
Stay up to date with our social media:
WKRC on Facebook: facebook.com/WKRCTV
WKRC on Twitter: twitter.com/Local12
WKRC on Instagram: instagram.com/local12wkrc/?hl=en
WKRC on TikTok: tiktok.com/@local12wkrc?lang=en
Subscribe to WKRC on YouTube: youtube.com/channel/UC673WfesrYoCgG9VsekGlEQ/?sub_confirmation=1
For more information, visit local12.com
Download the WKRC News app: local12.com/station/news-app
Download the WKRC Weather app: local12.com/weather/weather-app
Have a news tip? Send it directly to us:
Email us: local12@local12.com
Call the Newsroom: 513.421.6872
WKRC is an OH based station and a CBS Television affiliate owned and operated by Sinclair Broadcast Group, Inc. Sinclair Broadcast Group, Inc. is one of the largest and most diversified television broadcasting companies in the country today.
#WKRC #LOCAL12 #cincinnati #news #cincinnatinews
This video and all Sinclair Broadcast Group content archives of local news and sports coverage are available for your use. For more information contact us at contentsales@sbgtv.com
