The wind whipped up as Faith Railey arrived at Landmark Memorial Gardens on May 15, making it tough to hold on to all the balloons.
But the gusts didn’t bother Railey.
“He knows we’re here,” she told her grandchildren as they planted pinwheels around the gravestone.
Railey’s only son, James Christopher, would have turned 44 on May 15, but this year marked 15 years since he was killed in West Price Hill. He was 28.
The fatal shooting still remains unsolved.
In those 15 years, it’s become easier for Railey to accept that her son is gone, but her frustration has only been building as more time passes without an arrest. And even now, there are bad days.
“Sometimes it gets to the point where I’m just sitting staring at his picture,” she said. “I’ll be OK, then sometimes I’m not. I’m not better with it. Not yet. Maybe if I get closure it will get better.”
Christopher was shot on Jan. 24, 2011, in the 1200 block of Rutledge Avenue. There was a spike in gun violence that month and then-Mayor Mark Mallory even commented on his death expressing his condolences to Christopher’s family.
“We need peace in this community,” Mallory said. “This senseless violence must end.”
That night in 2011, Christopher’s family learned of the shooting through the news. Railey said they scrambled to find out where Christopher had been taken and by the time they got to the University of Cincinnati Medical Center, Christopher had died.
Railey, her family and others had tried to go speak to people in the area of the shooting, but everyone claimed they had not seen anything.
“They had to see what happened. Y’all know what happened, but no one is going to say anything,” Railey said.
Christopher grew up around Millvale and graduated from Western Hills University High School. He had five children of his own, four boys and girl.
He had three sisters. At the cemetery, one of his sisters, Kendra Lewis, wore a shirt with “Buggie” printed on the front. That was Christopher’s nickname.
She said it still feels like he was just killed yesterday. She remembers that he would come to her house almost every morning and eat breakfast with her and her children. She said he loved his nieces and nephews.
“He was more like my best friend,” Lewis said. “I just miss him.”
Railey said there is a person of interest in the case, but someone needs to come forward with information about what happened that night in order for justice to be served.
“That’s the only thing we’re waiting on is someone to speak out,” she said.
Anyone with information about the killing of James Christopher can call Crime Stoppers at 513-352-3040. Tips can be left anonymously.
This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: 15 years after man’s death, family is still waiting for justice
Reporting by Cameron Knight, Cincinnati Enquirer / Cincinnati Enquirer
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
