On the night of October 9, 2014, 17-year-old Shmerea Nailor was fatally shot around 10:30 p.m. in Buffalo’s Riverside neighborhood at the intersection of Riverside Avenue and Ontario Street. She was found near her bicycle on the sidewalk in front of St. Mark’s & All Saints’ Episcopal Church. Shmerea was a Burgard High School student and a basketball player for the Burgard Bulldogs; friends and family remembered her as a good kid.

Buffalo Police opened an investigation and early statements suggested Shmerea may not have been the intended target. A small memorial of roses, a teddy bear, and candles appeared at the scene and the school community mourned; her family received her cap, gown, and diploma on what would have been her graduation day, and later established a scholarship in her name. No arrests have been announced and the case remains unsolved.

If anyone was in the Riverside Avenue and Ontario Street area that night or has information about what happened, please share what is known.