Family honors slain Clairton teen, unborn daughter on day that would have been baby shower

A family gathered in McKeesport on Saturday night to honor an 18-year-old soon-to-be mother who was tragically shot and killed in Clairton a couple of weeks ago.

Saturday was supposed to be Ja'el Torres' baby shower, but now it's a day her family will never forget as they released lanterns into the sky, hoping her name will not be forgotten.

Just weeks after graduating high school, Torres was preparing for her next chapter, becoming a mother and planning her future.

"She was very excited; it was her first. I was excited for her," mother Rackelle Greene said.

On Washington Avenue in Clairton on July 13, gunfire erupted in an apartment complex, killing both Ja'el and her unborn baby girl, Jae'lani, leaving behind her family.

"Extremely hard for me and my family and my children," Greene said.

It's a stark contrast from what today was supposed to be: opening gifts and the excitement of welcoming new life, but now, two lives are gone, with family and friends releasing lanterns around her resting place.

"Ja'el was loved, as you can see," Tiara Snyder said. "But nobody wants to be here. Nobody wants to have to do this."

With no arrests made, now the family's focus is on justice for the teen.

"I just hope someone can help out and give us an anonymous tip. Not only us, the detectives," Snyder said.

While police have not mentioned much about the investigation, her family confirms Torres' boyfriend and the father of her child was found shot dead just two days later at a playground in Homestead.

"We are going to get justice for Ja'el. She was 18, had a pure heart. She had a whole life ahead of her. Her unborn baby, they didn't deserve this," aunt Brittnay Gonzales said.

The family tells KDKA-TV that if anyone has information, please come forward, even anonymously. Anyone who wants to share more information can call the Allegheny County police anonymous tip line.