Quiet sobs punctured the crowd’s silence as hundreds paid tribute Sunday to 27-year-old Meshay Melendez and her 7-year-old daughter Layla Stewart, whose bodies were found at the bottom of a steep slope of a roadside embankment in Washougal Wednesday.
Overcome with emotion, many of the friends, family members and strangers who gathered in Esther Short Park for the vigil embraced those around them for comfort. Elected officials and leaders from law enforcement shared their grief and concern as well.
“This is a stark reminder to all of us that each time an act of violence is committed, someone’s loved one does not come home,” said Vancouver Mayor Anne McEnerny-Ogle.
Melendez and her daughter were reported missing March 18 after family and friends said they had not seen the pair for six days. Melendez’s boyfriend, 28-year-old Kirkland Warren, was arrested in connection with their disappearance March 19.
Warren’s treatment by the justice system was a source of anger among attendees of the vigil.
Arkansas officials charged Warren in a 2017 Arkansas homicide, but he posted bail pending trial. Police in Clark County arrested Warren on March 2 on allegations he shot at Melendez’s apartment in Vancouver’s Minnehaha neighborhood in December. He was released from jail March 8 after again posting bail. Washington law allows courts to order people to wear GPS ankle bracelets to warn victims and police when an abuser is near, but Warren was not given one.
Melendez and her daughter were last seen March 12. Two days later, officials in Arkansas filed paperwork to revoke Warren’s bail in the 2017 case, according to the Associated Press.
Court records show that Warren repeatedly blamed Melendez in phone calls made from Clark County Jail for the domestic violence charges against him, and that police considered Warren to be a dangerous threat to her.
Family spokesperson Michelle Bart, CEO of the National Women’s Coalition Against Violence, said Warren’s release was unacceptable.
A statement from the family, read by Bart and Vancouver Domestic Abuse Detective Tanya Wollstein, described Melendez and her daughter as confident, caring and outgoing people. Bart’s organization is helping to cover the costs of their funerals.
“Meshay loved her daughter with all her might,” the statement said. “Layla had no problem being outspoken and expressing all her feelings… she wasn’t going to miss a chance to tell you she loved you.”
Officials called for more action to ensure that domestic abuse victims who are at high risk are required to have an ankle monitoring device if released. More broadly, speakers called on those in the crowd to do their part to recognize and stop domestic violence.
Family and friends of Melendez and Stewart wore purple hoodies with a photo of the two together, and the words “rest up.”
“Meshay and Layla need justice,” said Mahogany Elliot, one of Melendez’s cousins. “They were failed more than once.”
– Austin De Dios; adedios@oregonian.com; @austindedios; 503-319-9744
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