Christmas is usually a time when people hope for peace, but over the long weekend, into this morning three murders were reported. The first happened on Christmas Eve, as two friends stood in a yard talking. One of them reportedly got into an argument with another man, and while he may have been the intended target, it was his friend that received the fatal bullet.
Today we visited the home of a family who knows the pain of gun violence all too well. Courtney Menzies has this story.
Christmas Day was full of grief for two families after one man was shot and one killed the night before.
It was around 9:30 when one of the victims, 26-year-old Jevon Ramclam received threats from another man. He never thought he'd have to be dodging bullets once the man left, but according to his mother, only ten minutes later, shots started firing. And one of them fatally injured 30-year-old Darnell Puerto, who was simply a bystander.
And it seems the disagreement was born out of a miscommunication that cost one person his life.
Dawn Ramclam, Mother of Shooting Victim
"Couple minutes before the incident my son went inside and told me that my niece's baby dad came by to bring a Christmas gift for her and he told him that my niece wasn't here. my niece had gone out but it looked like he didn't know that she came back and it looked like the guy saw my niece's vehicle and he got upset so he started to tell my son some stuff and he said, watch your mouth and he said that he told him, I'm coming back for you. But they stood there and they just continued because they were taking their drink and so they just continued taking their drink without thinking that he was serious, it wasn't going to be anything. And about ten, fifteen minutes after, I believe, the guy apparently came back, he went for his gunman I believe and dropped him off and the gunman walked and attacked them right at the gate where they were still standing."
"I heard the gunshot, when I asked what it was, by the time we went to the door, they were taking my son inside and Darnel, he was running and he collapsed right at the corner of my house."
Ramclam survived and is recovering, but his friend passed away right in his yard. Now he's lost someone he considered a brother, after having lost two other brothers as well.
Dawn Ramclam, Mother of Shooting Victim
"He's okay, he's hurt because I mean he already lost two brothers. [crying]"
Courtney Menzies:
"Darnell was a close family friend?"
Dawn Ramclam, Mother of Shooting Victim
"Yes he was like a son to me also."
Courtney Menzies:
"So he was around here a lot."
Dawn Ramclam, Mother of Shooting Victim
"Almost everyday. He goes to work and when he finished work he would come because his girlfriend works at a restaurant, she mostly come of fin the night and then he comes all day and waits here until her shift is over and then they go home. He's always here, everyday."
And Ramclam told us that her both men were not the type to look for trouble:
Dawn Ramclam, Mother of Shooting Victim
"He's a hardworking person, they don't go around messing with anybody, they just like to take their drink and listen to their music, that's the kind of fun they always have, they don't go messing around with anybody to get themselves in trouble, no."
And both the Ramclam and Puerto families are one step closer to justice since police have already made an arrest.
ACP Hilberto Romero, OCED
"An investigation was carried out and since then we have arrested and charged Shaquille Perrera for the crime of murder."
Puerto had survived a previous shooting back in 2011, but his twin brother, Daniel Puerto, at this time. Despite this, he was granted a gun license for a 9MM pistol earlier this year. He was only found with an empty holster on his waist at the time of his murder.
As for the alleged killer, Shaquille Perera, he was charged for murder before and got off in 2022 after a year on remand.
