Alecia Aly Desirae Castillo was 15 when she was shot and killed on February 4, 2010, in Houston, Texas. Described as a caring teenager who liked to make others laugh, she was a student at the Ninth Grade Center in Pearland; her favorite movie was Twilight and her favorite color was purple.

The shooting was domestic violence. Alecia and her mother, Melissa Dawn Cole, were both fatally shot by Alecia’s estranged father, Jaime Piero Cole, after he arrived at Melissa’s apartment to drop off their two sons. Alecia tried to intervene and was shot multiple times. The younger son was later found unharmed and placed in protective custody; Jaime Cole fled the scene and was arrested the next day in Wharton County and charged with capital murder.

At trial Cole admitted the killings, saying the act was not premeditated and that he had bought the .22 caliber semiautomatic pistol the day before. He was convicted of capital murder and sentenced to life without parole. A scholarship fund in Alecia’s name was established in her memory.