Families Mark National Remembrance for Homicide Victims

On Sept. 25–26, candlelight vigils and memorials across the U.S. marked the National Day of Remembrance for Murder/Homicide Victims as families and advocacy groups gathered from Burrillville to San Antonio, Baton Rouge, Kansas City and Memphis to honor lives taken by violence. In Burrillville, loved ones held a vigil for 18-year-old Kylee Monteiro, who was 11 weeks pregnant; her boyfriend, Gregory Groom, admitted to stabbing and burying her and has been charged and is held without bail. In San Antonio, Parents of Murdered Children and other grieving families used the event to support one another and press for justice in often-unsolved cases, including the road‑rage killing of Aaron. Longstanding groups such as Kansas City's Mothers in Charge and local organizers in Baton Rouge and Memphis highlighted healing and advocacy—lighting candles, displaying quilts and offering counseling. Organizers said the gatherings ensure victims are remembered, provide mutual support for survivors, and strengthen demands for investigations, services and violence-prevention efforts.