Vigil to be held for slain Durham child
DURHAM (WTVD) -- Friday marked what would have been a tenth birthday for a murdered 9-year-old boy and a day short of almost nine months since he was brutally shot inside his mother's SUV.
To mark the day, Jaeden Sharpe's family will hold another vigil.
The third grader was gunned down on Jan. 4. His mother, Lakeisha Holloway, was taking him and few other children to a sleepover. She pulled into her driveway on Lucas Drive to let one of the kids grab a video game from inside her home. That's when someone came up to her driver's side window and fired several shots into her SUV. Holloway was hit in the face but somehow still managed to drive more than half-a-mile away looking for help. She ended up on Halyard Court where help finally found her.
While she survived the shooting, Jaeden did not. He died days later after being taken off life support.
Click here for a previous story from April.
"Still taking it daily," said his cousin, Sabrina Sweenie, as she described how the family is coping with this horrific loss. "He was a light in our family."
Soon after, the accused shooter, 23-year-old Everett Graves, was arrested and charged. Even though he now faces the death penalty, Sweenie says she and the family are frustrated with how the case is being handled.
"I just feel like they're taking it lightly," said Sweenie, who feels like there's been a lack of communication from the district attorney.
She feels the district attorney has failed to contact the family in a timely manner whenever Graves is in court. ABC11 took those concerns to District Attorney Roger Echols.
"If, in the past, there's been a breakdown in communication that is something I am responsible for now and that I will make sure that we do everything we can to keep the family informed," said Echols.
As far as a timeline for when a trial will finally begin, Echols can only say that prepping for trial is a lengthy process. It's one he wants to make sure will end with justice being served.
"It's a case I care about," he said. "It's a case that I want to see the right thing happen."
Since that night of Jan. 4, the family and the public have been asking why this happened. What could have driven someone to fire into an SUV full of people? While Jaeden's family has said they did not know Graves until after he was arrested, investigators believe this was not a random crime.
When asked if a motive has been revealed in the investigation, Echols said he could not reveal anything from the investigation at this time.
"Certainly, people would love to know what would motivate a crime like this, that's understandable, but there are rules in place for a reason, whether we like them or not, we just want to maintain the integrity of the investigation," said Echols.
Until that information comes out, and until their day in court, Jaeden's family will keep gathering to march in his memory and to show people what it means to take a life.
