“Mi hijo” were the words cried out as Luneli Lopez layed across her son’s casket. Xavier Gonzalez, 14, was one of three shot and killed the day after Christmas in 2021 at a Texaco gas station in Garland, Texas. The 14-year-old murderer Abel Acosta is still on the run. Xavier wasn’t the target of the shooting, he was just in “the wrong place at the wrong time”.

About the project: I was sent to the breaking news scene where Xavier was shot. It was there I met the family. Through showing empathy on the scene, the family invited me to their son’s visitation. 6 months later I was invited to his quinceanero. Finally I attended the the court date for the father who helped Abel Acosta get away after the shooting. Watching Xavier take 10 bullets in a courtroom a video is something I will never forget, nor will his family.