PORTLAND, Ore. (KATU) — In a tucked away Southeast Portland neighborhood off Southeast 136th and Knight Street, there’s a pot of flowers where 38-year-old LaToya Hill once lived.
Neighbors say she was shot and killed right in front of her house. This came as a shock for those who knew and cared for her.
“She’s got a big heart. I know she’s helped out a lot of kids, other kids and stuff like that. Kids who need a place to stay or, you know, stuff like that,” said Mario Perez, her neighbor and friend.
Perez gets sentimental about the kind of person Hill was. She reminds him of an important part of his own life.
“It reminds me when I was a kid, I grew up on the streets myself. I used to be in the gang and everything, and this lady, Janet, would take in a lot of kids off the streets and give them a place to sleep and eat and stuff like that,” said Perez.
He’s not the only one in the tight-knit neighborhood who says Hill believed in kids when no one else did.
Friday in court, 18-year-old Kamari Gates pleaded not guilty for the murder of Hill. He was also charged with second-degree attempted murder and unlawful use of a weapon.
He turned himself in Thursday as police searched for a suspect using drones. They served a search warrant at a home as well. He was booked into the Multnomah County jail.
As for Perez, he worries for Hill’s family. He says his daughter is friends with her daughter.
“I feel for the kids over there because my kids went through a similar thing. They lost their mom, so I can imagine how they’re feeling,” said Perez.
