VICTIMS’ GROUP TO SIT-IN
Wants Walsh to turn up heat on cold cases
Grieving family members of the victims of unsolved Boston homicides plan to stage a sit-in in Mayor Martin J. Walsh’s office next month, demanding the mayor dedicate more resources to crack cold cases.
“The mayor is responsible. He has run around this issue since he’s been in office,” said Mary Franklin, founder of the Women Survivors of Homicide Movement.
Franklin lost her late husband, Melvin Franklin, in a 1996 Dorchester murder case that remains a mystery. She said at first, the Boston police homicide unit seemed cooperative and interested in solving the case. But as the years went on, that changed.
“It spiraled downhill. Presently, I feel as if I’m being appeased,” Franklin said. “What I’m finding is that they’re just coming up with excuses. They’re not following up.”
She and other family members of unsolved murder victims claim detectives have acted dismissively about their cases, failing to return phone calls and schedule in-person meetings to discuss their lost loved ones.
“They give no updates. I don’t hear from no one, not even the DA that’s assigned to the case,” said Dorchester resident Kaiesha Skinner, whose 18-year-old son Aice Jackman was killed July 17, 2017. His death, too, remains unsolved.
She said now, the detective assigned to Aice’s case primarily contacts her through text messages.
“The texting is like a slap in my face,” Skinner said.
Franklin said she expects around 100 advocates to turn out at City Hall at 9 a.m. May 31 for a peaceful eight-hour sit-in. They want the mayor to increase funding for forensic investigations of unsolved murders, as well as the addition of a dedicated mental health clinician within the Boston Police Department to work with victims’ families.
“The Boston Police Department works hard every day to stem violence in our city, and is committed to solving all homicides in our neighborhoods to build a safer Boston for all,” Nicole Caravella, spokeswoman for the mayor, told the Herald.
Boston police did not respond to request for comment.
A 2014 special report by the Herald found that hundreds of city homicides from the past decade remain unsolved. Since then, Franklin has been a vocal advocate for the cause. She occupied BPD headquarters for 10 days and led rallies and walks to highlight the issue.
Amin Bell, 18, was slain in Roxbury, July 21, 1995. His sister, Nichole Bell, still doesn’t know who killed him.
Boston police detectives put together a video in February to raise public awareness about his case, but she said it was riddled with errors about basic facts of the case.
“They had all the information wrong. They had my name wrong, they had the year wrong,” said Bell, 42. “And this is what they were going to release. My brother was my everything.”