Thousands join annual Mother's Day walk for peace, tradition grew out of killing of boy in 1993
Wilkinson lost her daughter Taylor, a Fisher College student, last January when she was killed by an alleged hit-and-run driver while crossing a street in Roxbury.
'I really miss my daughter,' she said. 'She was only twenty years old. I will be strong for her. She is in my heart.'
Wilkinson joined thousands of others on Town Field in Dorchester to begin the 3.2-mile walk. It is the 29th time for the Mother's Day tradition -- and grew out of the shooting death of Louis D. Brown, a fifteen-year-old gunned down in gang crossfire 32 years ago. Ironically, Brown was en route to a Teens Against Gang Violence holiday party when he was killed.
Shortly after, his mother, Clementina Chery, founded the Louis D. Brown Peace Institute --- and then, a year later, the Mother's Walk, which honors homicide victims and provides solace to their survivors.
'In the best of times, in the worst of times, we rise and say, you are not alone and we are with you,' Chery said.
Among the participants, Boston Mayor Michelle Wu, who just became a Mom for the third time.
'Every year we start our Mother's Day walking alongside the mothers who have experienced unthinkable loss,' Wu said. 'But have worked to turn that pain into peace for the entire community.'
But make no mistake, the pain is still there.
'When one of the songs was playing, I was dancing,' said Janice Johnson. 'But I was crying at the same time.'
Johnson was crying over the death of her son, killed in a case of motor vehicle homicide about two years ago.
She has mixed feelings about the Mother's Day Walk -- because losses keep happening.
'Why?' she said. 'Why are there so many faces, why are there so many homicides... why are there so many causes of losing our children?'
This is a developing story. Check back for updates as more information becomes available.
Download the FREE Boston 25 News app for breaking news alerts.
Follow Boston 25 News on Facebook and Twitter. | Watch Boston 25 News NOW
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
New York Post
a day ago
- New York Post
Families try to clawback money from NYPD officers' killers
The outraged loved ones of two NYPD officers gunned down in cold blood are fighting to keep the killers from collecting hundreds of thousands of dollars in legal payouts. The families of slain Police Officer Russel Timoshenko, who was killed in 2007, and Detective Brian Simonsen, who was murdered in 2019, are filing lawsuits under the state's 'Son of Sam Law,' which prohibits criminals from profiting off their crimes, they told The Post. Lee Woods was convicted of murder for fatally shooting Timoshenko in the face and head during a traffic stop in Prospect-Lefferts Gardens, Brooklyn. The officer was just 23 — one of the youngest cops ever killed in the line of duty. 8 Hearthbroken mom Tatyana Timoshenko still goes to a Staten Island cemetery to be with her son on holidays. Leonardo Munoz Woods is set to get $250,000 after suing individual correction officers and the state in U.S. District Court in the Northern District of New York over his alleged mistreatment at maximum security Auburn Correctional Facility while serving a life sentence for Timoshenko's death. Learning of the settlement enraged the dead police officer's mom, who left a job in private industry to work in Information Technology at the NYPD to feel closer to her dead son. 'I don't want him to be rewarded even one penny for killing my son and being in prison for the crime that he committed,' Tatyana Timoshenko, who moved to the United States with her husband and son from the Russian republic of Balarus when he was 9, told The Post. 'I had only one child. I used to live for him and he was stolen from me.' 8 Timoshenko is trying to stop Lee Woods from getting $250,000 he was awarded after suing an upstate prison for keeping him in solitary confinement, court records show. Spencer A. Burnett 8 Russel Timoshenko was killed when he and his partner tried to pull over a BMW SUV in Brooklyn. Jeff Day Timoshenko, 59, and her husband Leonid, are suing Woods in Richmond County Surpreme Court to stop the payment. Russel Timoshenko survived for five days in the hospital after he was shot — and his mother remembers how she screamed when he died. The mom, who still wears a necklace that holds a tiny silver badge with her son's name on it, spent months with her school bus driver husband sitting in a chair by their son's grave at the Moravian Cemetery in Staten Island. 8 Widow Leanne Simonsen lost her husband in 2007 when he was killed while trying to stop a phone story robbery in Queens. J.C. Rice Today, that's where they can be found on holidays, including Mother's Day and Father's Day. 'This is my life,' she said, as tears fell from her eyes. 'On the holidays, we visit his grave because he can't come visit us.' Simonsen was killed in a hail of bullets fired by other cops after a robber drew a fake pistol during a T-Mobile store robbery in South Richmond Hill, Queens, in February 2019. 8 Jagger Freeman. who was convicted in the killing and sentenced to 30 years to life in prison, is set to get $243,000. His imprisoned killers, Jagger Freeman and Christopher Ransom, are set to receive $243,900 and $123,600, respectively. Ransom, who was wielding the prop and wearing a ski mask when he forced employees to open a safe in the back of the store, pleaded guilty to aggravated manslaughter and robbery in 2021. He was sentenced to 33 years in prison. Jagger Freeman, who orchestrated the robbery, was found guilty in 2022 of murder in the second degree, robbery, assault and grand larceny. He was sentenced to 30 years to life in prison. 8 Simonsen's wife Leanne is hugged by then-Police Commissioner James O'Neill during the funeral service of her husband at Saint Rosalie Roman Catholic Church in Long Island. J. Conrad Williams Jr. They were among 4,000 pretrial detainees who sued the city as part of a class-action suit, claiming that they were placed in solitary confinement in cells at Rikers Island for up to 23 hours a day. Simonson's widow, Leanne, said she was 'appalled' to learn of the planned payments. 'I couldn't believe that they were getting rewarded for being criminals. It's like the state is taking sides with the criminals and us victims are just hung out to dry,' she said. 8 Detective Simonsen was killed when one of the robbers at a T-Mobile store pulled a fake gun, causing police officers outside to fire through the glass and strike their brother-in-blue. William Miller Lawyer James Moschella, who represents the Detectives Endowment Association, filed suit for both police officer families. 'These two cases are the perfect examples of the just and appropriate use of the NYC Executive Law, the so-called Son of Sam law,' said Moschella, of Karasyk Moschella in Manhattan. 'It will ensure that these defendants, all of whom are responsible for the murder of two brave NYC police detectives will not profit from their incarceration.' Moschella filed a lawsuit in Suffolk County Supreme Court, where Simonsen's widow lives, to stop her husband's killers from getting the money. He filed the suit for the Timoshenko family in Richmond County Supreme Court. 8 Christopher Ransom, the robber who pulled out the imitation gun, sparking the gunfire that left the officer dead, is set to receive $123,600. Detectives Endowment President Scott Munro said the payments could erode public safety. 'Pamper cop killers, destroy public safety,' he said. 'It's that simple.' Lawyers for the inmates in their civil cases didn't return calls seeking comment.
Yahoo
6 days ago
- Yahoo
New Hampshire's new law protecting gunmakers faces first test in court over Sig Sauer lawsuit
CONCORD, N.H. (AP) — A new state law in New Hampshire that makes it harder to take gunmaker Sig Sauer to court is getting its first test before a judge on Monday. The 2-month-old law was created by the Republican-led Legislature in response to mounting lawsuits faced by the Newington-based manufacturer over its popular P320 pistol. The lawsuits say that the gun can go off without the trigger being pulled, an allegation Sig Sauer denies. Sig Sauer, which employs over 2,000 people in New Hampshire, said the gun is safe and the problem is user error. Several large, multi-plaintiff cases filed since 2022 in New Hampshire's federal court representing nearly 80 people accuse Sig Sauer of defective product design, marketing, and negligence, in addition to lawsuits filed in other states. Many of the plaintiffs are current and former law enforcement officers who say they were wounded by the gun. They say the P320 design requires an external mechanical safety, a feature that is optional. The most recent New Hampshire case, representing 22 plaintiffs in 16 states, was filed in March. It's the focus of Monday's hearing. The new law on product liability claims against Sig Sauer and other gun manufacturers covers the 'absence or presence' of the external safety and several other optional features. Claims can still be filed over manufacturing defects. Attorneys for Sig Sauer argue it should apply to the March case, even though the law didn't exist at the time. 'New Hampshire has a clearly articulated position against such claims being cognizable in this state,' they argue in court documents for breaking up the cases and transferring them to court districts where the plaintiffs live. Lawyers from a Philadelphia-based firm representing the plaintiffs, disagree, saying the law 'has zero implication' on the case and only applies to future lawsuits. New Hampshire was the chosen location because federal rules allow lawsuits against a company in its home state, the plaintiff's attorneys say. Those lawsuits have been assigned to one federal judge in Concord. Sig Sauer is trying to decentralize the case, they say. Sig Sauer has prevailed in some cases. It has appealed two recent multimillion-dollar verdicts against it, in Pennsylvania and Georgia. A judge recently allowed the Pennsylvania verdict to stand, but vacated $10 million in punitive damages awarded to the plaintiff. Download the FREE Boston 25 News app for breaking news alerts. Follow Boston 25 News on Facebook and Twitter. | Watch Boston 25 News NOW Solve the daily Crossword
Yahoo
16-07-2025
- Yahoo
Mass. lawmaker facing charges of drunken driving, property damage after arrest near State House
A Massachusetts lawmaker is facing charges after police say he was arrested on Beacon Hill near the State House in Boston early Wednesday morning. State Rep. John J. Lawn was arrested around 1:45 a.m. on charges of operating under the influence of liquor and leaving the scene of property damage, a Boston Police Department spokesman told Boston 25 News. Lawn is a Democrat who represents the state's 10th Middlesex District, which includes the communities of Newton, Waltham, and Watertown. Lawn also chairs the Committee on Health Care Financing. The Massachusetts Republican Party issued a statement in response to Lawn's arrest, calling for his resignation. 'Wednesday's arrest is another example of Beacon Hill Democrats using their titles to try and avoid punishment. By declaring himself a lawmaker at the time of his arrest, it's clear Rep. Lawn sought to escape the consequences of his actions,' MassGOP spokesman Mark Steffen said. He should resign and offer the residents of Watertown the chance to elect a new representative who doesn't ask officers to look the other way when he allegedly breaks the law." Boston 25 News has reached out to Lawn's office for comment on the incident. Boston police didn't immediately share additional details on the arrest. An investigation remains ongoing. This is a developing story. Check back for updates as more information becomes available. Download the FREE Boston 25 News app for breaking news alerts. Follow Boston 25 News on Facebook and Twitter. | Watch Boston 25 News NOW
