L.A. May Release Child Murderer, Second Victim Overlooked

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The unforgiving dawn of January
1995 brought with it a chilling

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discovery.
A suburban home, seemingly

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ordinary and filled with the
naive echoes of childhood, now

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held a sinister secret.
In the once idyllic shed where

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laughter and the smell of fresh
cut grass once rained now

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lingered the stench of concrete
and decay.

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A grotesque reminder of a
heinous act committed within its

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wooden walls.
The innocence that once

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permeated this space was
shattered, just like Maddie

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Moore's heart.
No longer seen as a doting aunt,

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she was now branded as a
convicted murderer.

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Her world had become twisted and
unrecognizable as her own

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bloodline became her victim, her
8 year old niece, Latoya.

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Welcome to No Tears for Black
Girls, a true crime series

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created, written and produced by
award-winning writer Jon

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Reedberg and hosted by Samantha
Paul.

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At the age of 45, Moore had
entered the prison walls.

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But now, at 74 and confined to a
wheelchair with one blind eye,

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she was desperate to escape.
As she addressed the California

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Parole Board from her cell in
Chowchilla in May, Moore recited

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Psalm 23 from memory.
The Lord is my shepherd.

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I shall not want.
But her words fell on deaf ears

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as the victim's loved ones also
spoke out against her release.

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Candace Moore couldn't
understand why everyone was

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focused on her aunt instead of
her cousin Kenny.

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She remembered little about him
except for his bright eyes and

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longing for love.
Born at the start of the crack

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epidemic in Los Angeles in 1983
to drug addicted parents, Kenny

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was taken away by his mother,
Chandra Soils, leaving behind

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his father, Kenneth Eugene
Gridiron.

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Senior Moore became the guardian
for Kenny as his mother

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struggled with addiction.
In around 1986, he disappeared

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without a trace.
It seemed as if he never

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existed, but retired detective
Dana Orient refused to let go of

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the case.
He tirelessly searched for an

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unidentified body that matched
the description of a missing 2

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year old from the Antelope
Valley area.

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In his pursuit for justice, he
came across another case

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involving a young boy found
encased in concrete in a storage

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unit in 1994.
The child was known only as John

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doe #245, and police had
received an anonymous tip about

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his location.
The medical examiner described a

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child with black kinky hair
wearing a plastic diaper and a

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red, white and blue sweatshirt
from Kmart.

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The cause of death was deemed
undetermined, but listed under

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other significant conditions
were multiple rib fractures.

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The case was ruled as a
homicide, and yet no one knows

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who this child was or what
happened to him.

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He remains forever unknown, lost
in a world where no one cared

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enough to claim him.
The case had all the makings of

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a swift and successful
resolution, a missing and

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murdered child, plenty of people
willing to help, and a clear

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connection between the victim
and their killer.

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But two decades later, the truth
remained elusive.

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Orient, a determined
investigator, stumbled upon a

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lead in the form of scribbled
case number tied to a John Doe.

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That John Doe was eventually
identified as Kenny, the older

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brother of Latoya Harris, who
had been misidentified after her

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brutal murder.
As Orient delved into the

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unsolved case, he uncovered a
disturbing pattern of abuse

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inflicted on Kenny by Maddie
Moore, the woman convicted of

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his sister's murder.
Despite her criminal record and

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family history of violence,
Moore's abuse was never

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officially documented until now.
With a name finally attached to

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the forgotten boy, Orient pushed
for justice and sought to bring

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closure to a family devastated
by tragedy.

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Candace's childhood was marred
by her mother Moore's violent

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and unpredictable behavior.
Despite the physical and

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emotional abuse, Moore was
entrusted with caring for Soil's

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children.
After her sister's death, the

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beatings only intensified, and
when youngest son Kenny

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mysteriously disappeared,
Candace thought he had been

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saved from their mother's wrath.
But the abuse continued and

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eventually led to the horrific
discovery of Latoya's body

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encased in concrete.
It wasn't until Morris bravely

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came forward and confessed to
helping his mother cover up the

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murder that the truth was
revealed.

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As Moore awaited trial, another
anonymous call led to yet

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another grisly discovery, A
second body encased in concrete

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belonging to an unidentified
child.

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While police worked tirelessly
to solve the case, Gridiron

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Senior's DNA didn't match any
missing children.

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At the time, it seemed like this
twisted family's secrets would

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remain buried forever.
The gruesome details of the case

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were enough to make anyone's
stomach turn.

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Gridiron Senior, a former
detective, recalled how they

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pushed his son's murder
investigation aside to focus on

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another case.
Afterward, he fell into a

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downward spiral of drugs and
alcohol to cope with the pain.

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During Moore's trial, the
medical examiner revealed the

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horrifying history of abuse that
8 year old Latoya had endured.

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The autopsy report showed scars
all over her body, including a

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puncture wound on her head and a
cigarette burn on her arm.

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Her official cause of death was
an overdose of drugs and

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alcohol, with a blood alcohol
level twice the legal limit and

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eight times the toxic amount of
antidepressants in her system.

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The autopsy also listed battered
child syndrome as a significant

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factor.
In tears, 9 year old Lisa

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testified about witnessing more
force feeding pills to Latoya on

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the night of her death.
Despite this evidence, Moore was

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only convicted of second degree
murder and sentenced to 15 years

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to life in prison by Judge
Morris B Jones, who expressed

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regret for not being able to
give her more time behind bars

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After Kenny's body was
identified years later, the lead

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detective Orient backed off the
case and told Gridiron Senior

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that the LAPD would soon be
coming after him, but months

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passed with no action taken
against Moore.

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Meanwhile, Moore had gone before
the parole board in 2014 at age

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64, claiming she was physically
disabled and mentally tortured

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by guilt for her actions.
She admitted to giving Latoya an

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overdose out of frustration and
denied ever physically harming

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her niece aside from spanking
her.

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But when asked about what
happened to Kenny or the

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identity of the other child
found in concrete, Moore simply

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replied.
I don't know.

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With freedom within reach, it
seemed like justice may never

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truly be served for these
innocent children.

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Candace stood before the board
dressed in a sharp Armani suit.

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Despite her flawless appearance,
she had been crying for hours on

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her way to the prison.
With determination in her voice,

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she accused her mother of
unspeakable acts.

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Candace described being locked
inside the house with no means

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of escape and blood stains on
the closet walls where her

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sister was kept captive.
She made it clear that she would

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never believe her mother's
remorse as she possessed an

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inherent evil gene.
After only 30 minutes of

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deliberation, the parole board
denied Moore's release, calling

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her evil.
Meanwhile, Orient was still

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fighting for justice for Kenny.
He wrote letters to the LAPD and

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District Attorney's office
expressing frustration and

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embarrassment at their lack of
progress.

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He even went to the media hoping
to put pressure on the police.

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Eventually they met with
Gridiron Senior and Oren

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presented his extensive 60 page
report detailing his interviews

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and suspicions about Moore's
involvement in Kenny's murder.

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But the case continued to drag
on without any action being

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taken.
Oren wrote to District Attorney

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Gascon wondering if the lack of
interest was due to their race

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and economic status.
He feared that Moore would

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continuously be up for parole
while justice for Kenny remained

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elusive.
In May, during another parole

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hearing over video, Moore
brazenly revealed that she had

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shoved Latoya into a door before
her death.

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Her past was riddled with
darkness and her anger issues

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were spiraling out of control.
As Candace wiped away tears, she

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recalled the horrific day when
her mother, Moore, murdered

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Latoya in a fit of fury.
Despite overwhelming evidence

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pointing to her guilt, Moore
maintained her innocence,

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blaming stress and lack of
support.

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But Candace knew better.
Her mother's deep rooted trauma

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and explosive temper had always
been a cause for concern, and as

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a 28 year sober and successful
adult, Candace pleaded with the

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parole board not to release her
mother back into society.

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She feared that Moore's
unresolved issues would only

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lead to further danger.
Despite this plea, the board

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surprisingly decided to let
Moore walk free after just 15

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minutes of deliberation, citing
her age and declining health as

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reasons.
But their decision was quickly

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challenged by Governor Gavin
Newsom, who referred the case

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for a full board review.
Gridiron Senior, another

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individual who had overcome
addiction himself, joined the

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fight against Moore's potential
release.

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He revealed a heartbreaking
detail.

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Kenny, Moore's son and Candace's
brother, had gone missing when

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he was just a little boy.
For Gridiron Senior, there was

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no doubt that Moore should spend
life behind bars for what she

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had done.
During the emotional parole

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hearing, Candace bravely spoke
out against her mother's cruel

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actions.
Despite her pleas, the parole

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board decided to release Moore,
leaving Candace and her family

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devastated.
As they tried to come to terms

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with the decision, LAPD Central
Bureau Homicide announced that

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Kenny's murder was still an open
case and justice would continue

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to be sought for him and his
family.

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When Gridiron Senior received
the news from Candace, he was in

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shock and disbelief.
His son's killer was being set

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free once again.
Frustrated and angry, Gridiron

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Senior slammed his first on the
kitchen table as he realized

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that justice may never truly be
served for his son.

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And as the days went by,
Gridiron Senior visited his

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son's final resting place at
Evergreen Cemetery, searching

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for any semblance of closure.
But all he found was a plot

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marked with 1995, where Kenny's
ashes were buried alongside over

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1800 others, including
unidentified victims.

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As Gridiron Senior stared down
at his son's grave, he couldn't

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help but feel anger and sadness
knowing that Kenny had been

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reduced to nothing more than a
statistic in a system that

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failed him and his family.
Thank you for tuning in to No

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Tears for Black Girls.
This series is skillfully

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crafted by acclaimed writer and
producer Jon Reedberg with the

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00:12:01,320 --> 00:12:04,280
guidance of unapologetic host
Samantha Paul.

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Catch new episodes every Tuesday
and Thursday on all major

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podcast platforms.
You can listen anywhere,

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anytime, and if you truly enjoy
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Remember to stay loved, stay

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blessed, and stay safe.