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Unpainted concrete walls and low-hanging power lines separate quaint, tightly situated homes. The noise of v-50s racing in front of my house til late in the evening was a daily occurrence. Younger boys would ride around on small pedal bikes, popping wheelies everywhere, or playing one-bounce in the middle of the road. At Mrs. Vanderpool’s house, the pink one on the corner, older men would drink and smoke weed while broadcasting dancehall over 3 foot woofer speakers.

Cedar Hill was a place where you could still borrow a cup of sugar from your neighbor. Bikes being stolen from backyards were the crimes of the day. But on July 10th 1988, the neighborhood forever changed.

Florita Jackson, 29, and her two daughters, Alicka, 8, and Ayeisha, 4, were murdered by her boyfriend in a residence next to Purvis Primary School. 

A girl who lived across the street heard the screams and called the police. He slit the throats of all three females. He murdered their mother first. Small bloody handprints were found inside the residence from her daughters dragging their blood-soaked hands down a wall. The girls were trying to flee.