NY NY - Sh'merea Nailor, 17/18, Buffalo , 2014

[AutumnAkasha]

Unfortunately, I found very little reporting on this case. I couldn't even find the exact date of her murder and her age was reported as both 17 and 18. Nonetheless, the feel she still deserves to be discussed and have her name out there.

“Life Stories: Restoring Justice” A Success! > News > Open Buffalo

Marquita Nailor lost her eighteen year old daughter, Sh’merea, to gun violence in 2014. Sh’merea was a star athlete, looking forward to her high school graduation, with a scholarship to Syracuse University. She was walking home from school with friends when someone mis-identified her, shot and killed her, and then “ran off before her body hit the ground.” Marquita ‘s grief was still apparent when she talked about the police who still have her daughter’s personal belongings and when she described the things she does to heal and keep her daughter’s name alive. She organizes annual fundraisers which allow her to give scholarships to promising high school students. She also created a van service, “Sh’merea World Transportation,” which she uses to transport people who want to visit their incarcerated loved ones around the state. The audience visibly responded to the heartbroken strains of Marquita’s musical choice, Wiz Khalfa’s “See You Again.”

Unsolved Murders: the newsletter bringing hope to dozens

BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB) -- Buffalo Common Council President Darius Pridgen is calling on the community for help to get violent criminals off the street.

So far this year, there have been 22 fatal shootings and one fatal stabbing. Buffalo Police have only cleared two of the homicides.

Pridgen is launching a newsletter to encourage people to come forward with information. The newsletter is called 'Unsolved Murders' featuring dozens of unsolved cases with pictures and information about each victim. Some cases even date back to the 1980's.

"You know, I just heard from so many families who would say, my son's crime hasn't been solved, my daughter's murder hasn't been solved, what else can we do? It isn't a dent in the amount of homicides we had over the last 10 years. You know this isn't just about homicides that may have happened in the last year, we're talking about homicides that may have happened 10, 15 years ago," said Pridgen.

Pridgen's hope is that the newsletter will bring old cases to the forefront because so many become forgotten.

"i don't wanna see just one homicide solved or two, I'd like to see several that really get solved because somebody read this or somebody thought about it and we kept the memory of those folks alive," said Pridgen.

Claudette Williams lost her 17 year-old granddaughter in 2014, her murder is still unsolved.

"My granddaughter Sh'merea Nailor was killed on Ontario Street in front of a church. She got shot directly in her chest. We haven't heard anything, we don't have any clues of who did it or you know what's going on," said Williams.

Williams hopes the newsletter will lead to answers.

"That's what we need, you know, so they won't be forgotten. They need to speak up, say something, it's okay today. Before I leave this earth, I believe it's going to be solved," said Williams.

Pridgen will be handing out the newsletters starting Monday. There will be a postcard for people to fill out anonymously with information about the crimes.

Because the newsletter is already in high demand, a second edition is expected in the near future.