Families of Walmart shooting victims grow frustrated with no trial date set
EL PASO, Texas (KVIA) -- Frustration is at an all-time high for family members whose loved ones were killed in the Cielo Vista Walmart shooting five years ago.
This comes after Thursday's hearing in the capital murder case didn't result in a trial date.
With the hearing focused on the shooter, Patrick Crusius, and his rights, they ask the community to remember the victims.
"It's not just the trial dates. It's not just when it hits the news every August 3rd. We live with this reality every single day. Yeah, it's impossible for us to forget and we just ask the community not to forget," said Stephanie Melendez, Daughter of Walmart shooting victim, David Johnson.
Melendez said she wasn't sure what she was walking into at Thursday's hearing, but after connecting with other families there, she felt support.
".. I didn't know if I was the only one who felt the frustration, the hurt, the anger. So when I did show up and I saw the other family members and they were already voicing their own frustrations there in the room, and I didn't feel alone anymore," said Melendez.
Families tell ABC-7 it's time for the community to shift their attention to the victims.
"If they want to go and take, you know, as long as they want, that's something that is out of my control. But what I do have control over is diverting the attention where it needs to be, and that's with the victims," said Christopher Morales, Nephew of Walmart shooting victim, Teresa Sanchez.
Morales said his mother and grandmother were also shot during the attack.
He said the shooting has left a lasting impact on his family, affecting everything from where he shops to how tight he can hug his mom, who was shot in the chest.
He asks for the communities support for all those impacted during this time.
"The survivors, a lot of them can't work. A lot of the survivors were working at the time, and now they can't work. And the fact that this whole process has taken so long. We just need that support to get through this time. This time period where we're waiting for justice and we're waiting for the end of this," said Morales.
Click here to view the Gofundme Morales created to help support victims and survivors. He asks survivors and people in the community who would like to get involved in these efforts to send him an email to Christophermorales915@yahoo.com.
