One-Of-A-Kind Memorial In Place For Murder Victim
DENVER (CBS4) - Friends and family of a man gunned down in Denver went to the site of his murder Sunday morning to view a one-of-a-kind memorial.
Desiderio Rodriguez's mother has worked for eight years to get the city of Denver to put a sign up in his honor. She petitioned the city for the sign, collecting signatures and permissions from the neighborhood until it agreed to put up the official anti-violence sign in honor of her son.
The sign, which is similar to those seen in memory of victims killed by drunk drivers, is the only one in memory of a murder victim -- and not just in the city of Denver, but in the nation.
For Helen Rodriguez, time has not eased the pain that comes from the loss of her son.
Helen Rodriguez had already lost one infant son to SIDS. Then Desiderio was taken from her -- shot to death outside of a restaurant off Broadway in Denver. It was a bar back in November of 2004. Desiderio was working as a bartender to earn extra Christmas money for his 13-year-old son. He blocked a disgruntled customer from returning to the bar after he was kicked out and was shot several times.
"You know this sign isn't about Dessie and me, it's about all of the parents of murdered children. It's all about their children and about getting the word out that we have to stop this senseless violence," Helen Rodriguez said.
The sign, across the street from the shooting, has been perhaps Helen Rodriguez's biggest motivator to push through the tears and a life without her son. She, along with family, friends, and even the former district attorney who prosecuted her son's killer, were all present for the dedication.
Desiderio's story, her tears -- they're what Helen Rodriguez wants people to see when they look at the sign to see what one senseless act of violence has done to one family -- and it may prevent another.
Desiderio's son, now 20, plans to dedicate his life to fighting violence as a police officer. And Helen Rodriguez will now focus on the upcoming memorial park where all families can come together to remember.
The city of Denver is also working on a plan for the signs dedicated to victims of drunk driving. It would enable people to look up the story behind the signs on a website.
