Some in attendance wore shirts honoring a man who family members say was stabbed to death last year and has yet to receive justice.
His name was Roy Scott Jr., who was 32 years old when he was pronounced dead at Springfield Regional Medical Center in December, according to his obituary.
Scott’s family says he was stabbed in the chest and was found outside his Springfield home not breathing.
On Tuesday, several dozen people gathered outside Springfield City Hall before marching to the Clark County Common Pleas Courthouse to raise awareness of Scott’s death.
They say that they have not received clear answers surrounding Scott’s death and believe that officers could be doing more in terms of an investigation.
They also hope to call attention to other cases in the city they believe remain unsolved.
“Really we are just out trying to demand some sort of justice for (Scott),” said Lena Harris, a friend of Scott’s family.
The demonstration was organized by Dion Green, who lost his father in the Oregon District mass shooting in Dayton in 2019 and has since aimed to be an advocate for victims of violence.
Green said the goal of the demonstration is to get the attention of city leaders as well as members of the Springfield Police Division. He said he also wants to give a platform to families who feel that they are not being heard.
Harris said that she feels that these incidents go under the radar in the city especially when the victims are Black. A sentiment shared by several others who attended the demonstration.
“It seems like we can all get together when bad things happen. But the reason why the things continue to happen is because we don’t have any unity in general,” Harris said.
“Outside of the bad things that happen we need to be able to come together as a community and stop these things happening before they start,” she added.
Juanita Embry said that her son Scott was a father of three and was the life of their family. She said that her family has not received adequate answers regarding his death and feel that more can be done.
Green said he hopes that with more attention the family will get more answers or at least more transparency.
The demonstration started at 1 p.m. outside of Springfield City Hall before moving to the courthouse. Those that attended temporarily blocked the street outside the courthouse before speaking with several police officers.
In a statement sent to the News-Sun, Springfield Police Chief Lee Graf said “the Springfield Police Division supports all legitimate efforts to end violence in our community.”
“One of the largest factors in solving crimes is community cooperation with the police. Hopefully, this gathering will raise community awareness and encourage those with key information to step forward to help the police bring some closure to the families of victims of homicide,” Graf said.
“Our hearts go out to these families and we want to solve these crimes and work hard to do so every day,” he added.
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