1 year after South Florida tragedy: Brickell teen's legacy persists through scholarships and advocacy

Monday, June 8, marks one year since a brutal murder shocked South Florida.

On that day, a killer crept into a Brickell high-rise and stabbed a teen to death as he slept.

In the wake of the tragedy, that teen's mother is on a mission to keep her son's legacy alive.

At the recent Miami Beach Senior High School graduation, Dominic Ferrell was acknowledged.

"We pause to honor the memory of Dominic Ferrell, whose journey ended too soon, but whose impact on our community will not be forgotten," said Principal Al Torossian.

As a tribute, his family was presented with his diploma.

Reflecting on the moment, Christine Maron, Dominic's mother, said, "He would have been graduating. He would've been a senior starting his whole life."

On June 8 last year, while staying with his father, Dominic was attacked by an intruder who entered the unlocked 34th-floor unit at the ICON Residences in Brickell.

According to the investigative report, Kyrill Kehl stabbed Dominic 94 times.

After the attack, the report states the killer crossed to a construction site and either jumped or fell to his death.

Maron can see the ICON building from the windows in her living room.

"I felt like his energy was still here, his last breath was there, so I didn't mind looking at it," she said. She added she doesn't feel his presence there anymore, now that he's buried next to her own mother back in their home state of California.

At just 17 years old, Dominic, the oldest of her four children, lost his life.

"I was lucky to be his mom. It was a privilege to be his mom," she said.

Maron says Dominic was ambitious, hardworking, and compassionate. He loved to follow the stock market and enjoyed a good debate. But things didn't always come easily for him.

"Growing up, he had some learning challenges. He had a growth hormone deficiency. He suffered from Tourette's, so you know he'd be blinking his eyes or jerking his head," Maron said. "So he had a lot of things that he overcame when he was young."

This spirit of overcoming obstacles is what she wants to remember and inspire in others.

Maron created the Dominic Paul Maron Ferrell Foundation to fund various scholarships and awards in her son's honor. So far, they've awarded more than $17,500 in scholarships to students at Immaculata-La Salle, Sts. Peter and Paul Catholic School and Miami Beach Senior High. 

Other gifts and awards totaling more than $35,000 have also been given out in Dominic's honor.

For Maron, this is a form of "replacing the loss."

"I'm focused on replacing it with positive things—honoring him, the foundation," she said. "That's also a way in which he lives on through his legacy, helping other students."  

In addition to foundation work, she's also jumped into advocacy, working with state lawmakers to pass domestic violence legislation, and she hopes to create reform around building safety.

Amid all this, Maron says her faith has helped her find forgiveness for her son's killer.

"I also have a lot of compassion for the other family," she said. "They lost a son, too."

Maron and her children participated in the annual Steps for Healing 5K with The Children's Bereavement Center.  Maron says Dominic's siblings utilized the CBC in the aftermath of his death.

This year's Steps for Healing 5K is scheduled for November 7, 2026.

Maron and Dominic's father is suing the ICON Brickell for wrongful death, alleging security failures.

That litigation is ongoing.