One year later, vigil honors victims, first responders
Event largely held online after pandemic forces festival cancellation
rILROY >> Members of the community gathered in person and online Tuesday evening to remember the shooting that shocked the town in the closing hours of the city’s beloved Garlic Festival one year ago Tuesday.
Local leaders and relatives of victims spoke at the ceremony, remembering the events of July 28, 2019. On that day, a gunman opened fire at the Gilroy Garlic Festival, killing three people — 6-year-old Stephen Romero, 13-year-old Keyla Salazar and 25-year-old Trevor Irby — and wounding 17 others.
“Our community owes a huge debt of gratitude to three Gilroy police officers and all of the first responders who worked to stop the shooter, investigate the crime, tend to the injured and help the community,” said Santa Clara County District Attorney Jeff Rosen.
The event 19-year-old Santino Legan targeted was woven into the fabric of his hometown. Every July for the past four decades, the festival has drawn 80,000 to 100,000 visitors to celebrate the region’s signature crop; locals grow up visiting the festival, volunteer there in high school and return as adults with their own children.
Organizers had hoped to bring the event back this year as a symbol of civic unity, but those plans were scuttled in March by the COVID-19 pandemic, and the festival was postponed until next year.
Even Tuesday’s vigil was largely virtual. Though a small number of attendees were able to gather in person in Christmas Hill Park, because of social distancing requirements, most had to tune into the livestream — a far cry from the hundreds who gathered outside City Hall the day after the shooting, holding candles and hugging one another in their grief.
The vigil honored the three young victims of the shooting: Romero, who had just graduated from kindergarten; Salazar, who had dreamed of becoming an animator; and Irby, who had moved to California from New York and had been living in Santa Cruz with his girlfriend.
Speakers also praised the courage of the first responders, including Eric Cryar, Hugo Del Moral and Robert Basuino, the three Gilroy police officers who shot and wounded Legan moments after he opened fire. All three attended the ceremony Tuesday, returning to the park “where their bravery stopped evil,” Rosen said; he presented them with medals of honor for their actions.
An investigative report by the
Santa Clara County District Attorney’s Office in March found that the officers were “unquestionably lawful and justified” when they shot Legan, who killed himself during the gunbattle with police.
“For the rest of our life, we will never forget those three officers and that one minute of selfless bravery,” Rosen said.
One year later, the community is looking back and trying to move forward. Rosen pointed out a permanent memorial at the park to the victims of the shooting — three large rocks representing those who died, and a fence with 17 wooden posts for those wounded.
The Gilroy Strong Resiliency Center, which organized the vigil along with the Santa Clara County District Attorney’s Office, opened in January to offer counseling, trauma education and assistance applying for victim compensation funds.
Salazar’s art is displayed at the Gilroy Resiliency Center, and her family is planning a mural to honor her. But Salazar’s family said it wants her death to lead to real change, too.
“We should fight so this doesn’t happen again, so there isn’t another Kayla,” said Katiuska Pimental, her aunt. “I do feel like the system failed her.”