On July 20, 2017, 31-year-old Graciela Portillo-Esparza was shot and killed at a mobile home park in Kalamazoo, Michigan, after stepping in to intervene in an argument between her brother, Oscar Portillo, and a man identified as Zachary Patten. Graciela was a mother of four and is remembered by family as strong-willed and protective; she intervened to try to de-escalate the dispute and was fatally struck when Patten produced a firearm and shot in her direction.

The shooting was part of a broader violent spree attributed to Patten; after the Kalamazoo killing he drove to St. Joseph County and murdered another man, Shane Richardson. Patten was arrested and charged with multiple crimes, including first-degree murder in Graciela’s death. At trial he admitted firing toward Graciela but said his intended target was her brother. In February 2018 a Kalamazoo County jury found him guilty of first-degree murder, and in March 2018 he was sentenced to life without parole.

Did anyone in the community know Graciela or have information about the events that night?