On the morning of April 12, 2025, police in Trenton, New Jersey, responding to a 911 call found two family members fatally shot inside a home on the 300 block of West State Street. Thirteen-year-old Jairah Biggs was discovered in her third-floor bedroom; her 40-year-old mother, Malika Whiting, was found on the stairway leading to that floor. Both were pronounced dead at the scene.

Jairah was a student in the Trenton Public School District and was remembered by program mentors as a sweet, kind-hearted girl with promise. The deaths devastated family, friends, and neighbors and prompted community outreach to support the children left behind, including a fundraiser organized by Malika Whiting’s son.

Authorities identified a person of interest and announced an arrest on April 17, 2025; the individual charged was the mother’s former boyfriend, facing two counts of first-degree murder and multiple weapons offenses. Does anyone who knew Jairah or the family have information that could help clarify what happened that day?