Mother Forgives Daughter's Killer, Gets Him Lenient Sentence and Opportunity to Rebuild Life
A grieving mother in South Miami-Dade made a very powerful statement yesterday as she hugged the teen who accidentally shot and killed her 13-year-old daughter two years ago. Ady Guzman-DeJesus met with prosecutors in order to try and get the young man a lighter sentence, and once that sentence was handed down, she approached the young man and hugged him, astonishing everyone including the judge in the case.
Jordyn Howe, 16, was only 14 when he took his father's gun from the bedroom closet and boarded the school bus. He wanted to show the gun off to his friends, and DeJesus' daughter Lourdes began pulling the trigger and aiming the weapon, but meaning no harm to anyone. When Howe took the gun back, he fired the weapon, but it did not discharge. Feeling it was safe, he then aimed the gun at Lourdes and fired.
Lourdes was struck in the neck and rushed to the hospital where she was pronounced dead. Howe immediately confessed and pleaded guilty to manslaughter with a deadly weapon, possession of a firearm by a minor and carrying a concealed weapon.
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DeJesus managed to work with prosecutors to secure a plea deal that saw Howe tried as a juvenile, and he will avoid any prison time thanks to her. Instead, he'll be sent to the Avon Park Youth Academy for one year, where he will complete vocational training. Howe will also speak about gun violence alongside his victim's mother at least 12 times per year.
"It is our hope that … he will join me in going from school to school, from child to child, from parent to parent, from teacher to teacher, urging them to understand how dangerous guns are in the hands of children," DeJesus told the court.
"We can make a change to help other children," DeJesus later told reporters. "That was Jina's (Lourdes') friend, too, and I know she wouldn't want the worst."
"I'm sorry for her loss and I apologize for doing what I did," Howe said as he was enveloped in a hug from DeJesus.
After Howe finishes his year at the Academy, he will remain under the supervision of the Florida Department of Juvenile Justice until he turns 21. He'll have to undergo psychological counseling, random drug testing, and maintain either a full-time job or be enrolled in school.
"In 20 years, I've watched human tragedy unfold in this courtroom," Miami-Dade Circuit Judge Ellen Sue Venzer told the room. "I could have never imagined a victim's mother embracing her child's killer. I hope and pray you do not squander this opportunity you've been given."
