In the warm summer night of July 26, 2016, the life of 23-year-old Monique Brown, an African-American female, was tragically cut short in her hometown of Memphis, Tennessee. Around 11:30 p.m., in the 3200 block of Cypress Lake Drive near the intersection of Quince and Riverdale in the southeast part of the city, the sound of gunshots pierced the air. Responding to the scene, police discovered Brown with gunshot wounds.
She was rushed to Regional One Health in critical condition, but her injuries proved to be fatal, and she succumbed to them at the hospital.
Friends and family remember Monique as a sweet, hardworking, and loving young woman who smiled all the time and was very close to her family. Her sudden and violent death sent ripples of grief through her community, leaving behind a family searching for answers and a community mourning another life lost to gun violence. A memorial with numerous candles was established in her honor, a testament to the love and sorrow of those she left behind.
Despite the passage of time, the case of Monique Brown's murder remains unresolved. Investigators have yet to publicly identify any suspects, and no arrests have been made in connection with her shooting. The Memphis Police Department has urged anyone with information to come forward and contact CrimeStoppers, but as of now, justice for Monique and her family remains elusive. Her death added to a surge in homicides in Memphis that year, a grim statistic that underscores the profound and lasting impact of unsolved violent crimes on a city and its people.
