Community pays tribute to slain 16-year-old Izaiah Carter who was shot in 2023 near Patterson High

BALTIMORE -- Friends and family paid tribute to 16-year-old Izaiah Carter Saturday evening.

The teen was shot and killed on March 6, 2023, in Southeast Baltimore near Patterson High School.

Carter's mother says this has been the hardest year of her life.

She told WJZ it was painful for her to return to Patterson High School, but that it's important to keep her son's memory alive.

" This has been hard, so having a day like this, where I'm like, 'I want to try it,' and I want to catch kids in the school before they graduate," said Michelle Hines, Carter's mother. "To see so many turn out and so many willing to speak, I was very proud of them and glad they were able to overcome some of their traumas, as well, and be able to share their stories with me because I wanted to hear them, I needed to hear them."

Police Carter was shot in the head on March 6 at Joseph E. Lee Park, near the school, in the 5900 block of East Pratt Street. He was pronounced dead at the hospital. 

Two weeks later, authorities in Texas arrested 23-year-old Roger Alexander Alvarado-Mendoza in connection to his murder as he was trying to flee the country. 

Investigators believe Mendoza shot and killed Carter following a dispute. 

Carter was a JROTC cadet at Patterson High and made a huge impact on his many friends and beloved family members.

According to court records, Mendoza has a hearing scheduled for April 22.