ST. LANDRY PARISH — It was a bittersweet day in Opelousas as family and friends gathered Monday to honor the memory of 18-year-old Mareya Henry with a balloon release.

Mareya was shot and killed on Oct. 12 at her home in St. Landry Parish, according to her mother, Kellie Henry, who spoke publicly about the tragedy for the first time.

“I wake up angry, a lot,” she said. “I think that dating violence and domestic violence are so normalized.”

Henry said she had been out of town for a book signing in Dallas when the shooting occurred.

“I did ask her to come, but she wasn’t too excited," Henry said. "She and I lived together, alone, and so I actually arrived on the scene probably ten minutes or less after it actually happened.”

Henry said the shooting happened in the kitchen of their home

See Full Page