Atlanta

Secoriea Turner’s family remembers her on what would have been her 10th birthday

ATLANTA — The family of an 8-year-old killed during protests last summer says the one thing they wish they could be thankful for this year is if everyone responsible for her death was in custody.

Secoriea Turner would have turned 10 years old on Wednesday, but her life was cut short when she was hit by a stray bullet during a protest over the death of Rayshard Brooks at the hands of police.

“We didn’t deserve this. My baby didn’t deserve this,” her mother Charmaine Turner said.

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Thanksgiving will never be the same for the Turner family because of the missing seat at their table and Secoriea’s November birthday being a constant reminder as they gather together.

“Every day is a struggle. It doesn’t get better. We’re hurting,” Charmaine Turner told Channel 2′s Tom Jones.

Secoriea and her mother were in a car when gunmen began firing at them on University Avenue where protestors had gathered.

Two people have been indicted, but Turner says two more suspects have not yet been arrested.

She says it pains her to know that these two people are free while Secoriea is no longer here.

“They don’t understand how hard it is to wake up everyday without your loved one,” she said.

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The Turner family gathered in Lincoln Cemetery where Secoriea has been laid to rest to celebrate her 10th birthday on Wednesday. The celebrations were filled with one of her absolute favorite things: unicorns. They also lit candles and released balloons and sky lanterns.

“She should be here celebrating her 10th birthday with me and her family and loved ones,” Turner told Jones.

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The family says they need the public’s help to find everyone responsible for Secoriea’s death and to learn why she was taken away so soon.

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