[Congressional Record Volume 172, Number 69 (Monday, April 20, 2026)]
[House]
[Page H2981]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




             MOMENT OF SILENCE FOR SLAIN SHREVEPORT FAMILY

  (Mr. JOHNSON of Louisiana asked and was given permission to address 
the House for 1 minute.)
  Mr. JOHNSON of Louisiana. Mr. Speaker and colleagues, our hearts are 
broken tonight, as they have been since Sunday morning. Everyone has 
seen the stories in the news out of my hometown of Shreveport, 
Louisiana, a city that is represented in part by Congressman Cleo 
Fields, who is here with me now.
  We stand here with one voice as members of the Louisiana delegation 
to express our deep sorrow for the lives that were taken too soon. 
There were eight young, innocent children, all between the ages of 3 
and 11, lost in a tragedy that can only be described as senseless, 
unspeakable evil.
  Jayla Elkins was 3 years old; Shayla Elkins, 5; Kayla Pugh, 6; Layla 
Pugh, 7; Markaydon Pugh, 10; Sariahh Snow, 11; Khedarrion Snow, 6; and 
Braylon Snow, 5.
  As the details of their killing unfold, it is difficult for us to put 
our emotions into words. This tragedy confounds the minds and hearts of 
every parent in America, and we have been thinking a lot about this. We 
encourage mothers and fathers to go home tonight and hold your loved 
ones extra close. I think all of us are doing that.
  Life is a sacred gift from God. As this horrific event reminds us, it 
can be too short.
  The entire community of Shreveport needs our prayers right now: the 
first responders and law enforcement who descended swiftly on the 
scene, the classrooms with empty seats and missing friends at school 
today, and, most of all, the families whose lives have been forever 
changed by this tragedy.
  Hold all of them close in your hearts and your prayers, if you will, 
and we trust that God is close to the brokenhearted, as promised to us 
in Scripture.
  If we could all please join in a moment of silence in honor of the 
eight young and precious lives who were lost far too soon.
  Mr. Speaker, I ask that the House now observe a moment of silence.

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