A routine shopping trip in the Bronx turned deadly on December 19, 1995. Twelve-year-old Rafael Gonzalez was at Little Chester Shoes with his mother, Maria Carrasquillo, 38, and his 14-year-old brother, Ricardo, when a man later identified as 22-year-old Michael Vernon opened fire inside the small store during a robbery attempt. Rafael, Ricardo, and Maria were all fatally shot. The attack also killed Kyong Bae, the 41-year-old wife of the store’s owner, and one other person; several customers and bystanders were wounded but survived.

Vernon reportedly had been casing the store and fled after the shooting, taking a hostage before a confrontation with police outside the shop led to him being shot and arrested. He was described in reports as having a history of mental illness and prior arrests. Prosecutors pursued murder and attempted murder charges; a defense raising his mental state was mounted. Rafael was one of five people killed in the massacre.