A high school basketball player dodged bullets and was forced to run for his life, not once but twice. Now, the teen athlete says he feels lucky to be alive but traumatized by rampant gun violence. 

Tarique Foster was caught in the chaos, running with friends, after bullets started flying outside a Bronx graduation party on Zerega Avenue last month. 

"Someone told me, 'I think you got shot,' because they saw the hole in the back of my pants,” said Foster. 

Foster is one of five young victims who was shot that night. The bullet pierced his right calf and left an exit wound--a close call for the 17-year-old athlete, who doctors say could have been in trouble if a particular artery or vein had been hit. 

At least 886 people have become victims of gun violence this year, according to NYPD stats. That is up by more than 30% from this time last year. 

Bronx District Attorney Darcel Clark is now tackling gun violence with a new strategy, P.E.A.C.E. 

P.E.A.C.E. stands for Precision Enforcement and Community Engagement. Instead of assigning an assistant DA to a non-fatal shooting after the NYPD makes an arrest--Clark is now sending her most experienced prosecutors to help in certain investigations right off the bat. 

By pouring resources into some non-fatal shootings in crime hotspots, the DA hopes to get repeat offenders off the street before they do even more damage--building evidence-based cases with or without cooperating victims. 

Now, the governor recently announced a plan to address the gun violence crisis. This is part of the DA’s Peace Plan, which is working with the city to engage the community. 

Programs like “Saturday Night Lights” give kids the chance to play basketball in places like the Webster Center rather than hanging out on the streets.