On a rainy Palm Sunday, April 15, 1984, ten people were found shot to death inside a Brooklyn apartment in what became known as the Palm Sunday Massacre. Among the dead was 14-year-old Hispanic female Migdalia Perez, one of the teenage girls discovered in relaxed positions on couches and chairs, which suggested the victims were taken by surprise. In all, nineteen bullets were fired from two different handguns at close range, and most victims were shot in the head.

Investigators determined the motive was jealousy. Christopher Thomas suspected his wife of having an affair with Enrique Bermudez, the apartment owner. Thomas’s wife testified that he was enraged when he found her at Bermudez’s residence without him. Other victims included Virginia Lopez, her sons Juan, 4, and Eddie, 7; Migdalia’s sister Carmen Perez, 20, who was pregnant, and Carmen’s sons Alberto, 5, and Noel, 3; and three girls, 14-year-old Betsy Bermudez, 10-year-old Marilyn, and 10-year-old Maria Isabel Perez. The sole survivor was Carmen’s infant daughter Christina.

Christopher Thomas was tried the following year and convicted on ten counts of manslaughter after the jury accepted his claim of extreme emotional disturbance and drug influence, resulting in a lengthy prison term. Anyone with memories of the apartment, the victims, or that Palm Sunday night is asked to share information.