INDIANAPOLIS — 24-year-old Shania Shaw was shot and killed on Christmas Day in what her family suspects was a domestic violence incident. More than a hundred of her loved ones honored her memory during an event this weekend.
"It is a hard pill to swallow," said Shania's mother Shantell Shaw. "Your memory is what gets left behind, not your presence, and that's what hurts."
Shantell Shaw and Shania's brother Devin Dozier led the memorial ceremony at Perry Park Saturday afternoon. They reflected on her life, after which the crowd released balloons in her name.
"I'm really just speechless, this doesn't seem real," said Shaw's brother Devin Dozier. "A couple stages after this, it will start feeling real. I'm glad I was here to speak for her."
Shaw's family hopes her death can raise awareness about domestic violence. They say the person arrested for her murder is the father of her young children, who are two and one years old.
"Don't second guess domestic violence," Shantell Shaw said. "Don't think, don't hope, don't wish. If it happened once, it's going to happen again."
Advocates urge anyone facing a potential domestic violence incident to call the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 800-799-7233.
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