Kadeem Smith

Kadeem Smith, a 23-year-old Black man, was remembered by loved ones for his ambition and kindness. A graduate of Charles W. Flanagan High School who had also attended Broward College, Kadeem’s dream was to serve his country. He enlisted in the U.S. Army a month after graduating in 2014, but an injury forced him to leave training early. Friends and family described him as a respectful, hardworking young man with a “great soul” and a heart of gold, someone who would spend his last dime to buy food for a homeless person. He lived with his mother in Pembroke Pines, Florida.

In the early morning hours of March 19, 2019, Kadeem returned to his family’s apartment at the Bella Grande community after a shift at a local restaurant. He arrived around 12:20 a.m. in a state of panic. He told his brother, Keith Wynn, that he was afraid because he believed someone had followed him home from work. Kadeem was seen peeking out the kitchen window before he stepped onto the outside porch.

A few minutes after Kadeem went outside, multiple gunshots rang through the apartment complex. His mother, Marie Senior, and his brother ran out to see what had happened. They found Kadeem lying on the patio floor, unresponsive. He had been shot multiple times, including in the back, and was not breathing. Kadeem Smith died on the porch before help could arrive. His mother later said she felt her son had been "hunted down, and killed."

The Pembroke Pines Police Department launched a homicide investigation, learning that security cameras may have recorded a car following Kadeem into the complex. Within days, police identified a suspect. By March 22, 2019, they had arrested 19-year-old Bryan Carl Fenders Bernadelle in connection with the killing. Bernadelle was charged with premeditated murder and booked into the Broward County jail, where he was held without bond. As of his arrest in March 2019, the case was proceeding through the legal system.