Grieving mothers, grandparents and more stood shoulder to shoulder with loved ones of Bronx resident Michael Hernandez Jr. outside the Barclays Center, six months after he was killed.
Hernandez's mother, Marisol Miranda says the pain is still fresh.
“It feels like yesterday. It hurts. I'm learning how to walk with a limp. I get choked up. But this is life," Miranda said.
While no parent should have to bury their child, many of the people who attended did, like the founder of Not Another Child Inc. Oresa Napper-Williams.
“I think about my child every single day. It's a club we never thought we were going to be apart of. A club you didn’t even know existed," said Napper-Williams.
Miranda says she and her family will continue to call for justice.
“Turn yourself in. I believe that if you turn yourself in, you're relieving that burden that you're carrying for knowing that you had an involvement in that. No matter where you go in life, that’s something that’s going to haunt you," Miranda said.
But she also says she wants to use her pain for change. The family created an online petition calling for stronger laws and sentences and for those who serve the time to get rehabilitation.
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