Death of Chanel Petro-Nixon
--THIS PAGE IS IN THE CREATION/EDITING PROCESS AS OF JUNE 25, 2007. I'M STILL GATHERING THE FACTS.--MurderWatcher1 17:07, 28 June 2007 (UTC)
Chanel Petro Nixon was a young, Black, African American who was a 16 year old Honor student and who was murdered in June of 2006.
Life
Chanel Petro Nixon was born in 1989. She lived in the Bedford Styvesant section of Brooklyn, New York and she was a member of the Mt. of Olives Seventh-day Adventist Church on Bushwick Avenue. She was considered 'devout' (see Devotion) by her family in regards to her church and prayer attendance. She was also a 10th grader at Boys and Girls High School and was known as a straight-A student who spent her after-school hours in the library. According to Nancy Grace of CNN "She wanted to become a nurse to help other people". (See CNN link below).
Murder
On Sunday, June 18, which was a 'Father's Day', Chanel Petro-Nixon had left her home which included family members Garvin, her father; Lucita Nixon, her mother; Marcus and Giovanni, her brothers; and decided to walk to a nearby Applebaum's restaurant to fill out a job application. She was not seen or heard from again for four days. Her body was later discovered in a trash bag on Kingston Avenue, and it was later determined that she had been strangled.
Chanel's case is being investigated by the 77th Precinct. Thus far, there are no leads and no arrests. Her killer has not been identified (see reference for Identification in Wikipedia), nor has anyone in the neighborhood come forward as a witness in the case. There was, however, no evidence of sexual assault, torture or marks on her body which was reported as 'decomposed' in at least one news report. Also, the timeline in this case appears puzzling. Chanel had left home around 6:00 p.m. on Sunday, June 18, 2006, went missing, then her body was found on June 22, 2006 around 8:30 a.m. (See Deaths in 2006). The Medical Examiner estimates her time of death at less than 24 hours before her body was discovered. The questions are asked of where she was when she went missing up until the time she was killed, and where was she strangled? It is felt by those involved in her case that someone knows something but no one is coming forward.
Reward
The New York City Police Department interviewed all of Chanel's friends and collected hundreds of tips. A $38,000 reward for useful information was given. There is a poster featuring Chanel's face peering out from a window of a McDonald's restaurant on Fulton Street, offering a $22,000 reward. The fund represents contributions by Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg, The New York Daily News, The Reverend Al Sharpton and the Police Department. There has been no claim to the reward.
The Reaction of the Family and Friends
It was reported that Chanel's father is alienated from his neighborhood. He is quoted as saying: "I don't trust anybody," and "That person shaking your hand, smiling in your face, could be the one who did this".
Chanel's mother takes a different viewpoint. To quote from the New York Daily News: "I won't let anger poison me".
Her cousin, Errol Wilson, was quoted in a New York Daily News article as saying "She was beautiful inside and out". "She had an inner beauty you rarely find. ... It's a terrible situation, and hopefully the police will do their job." He also said: "She rarely went out,"; "She didn't hang out. She didn't want to."
A teen friend of hers had said: "She would never do anything wrong", and then further added that they had read the book, "The Da Vinci Code", together." "She had good grades. I would call her the 'little nerd.'"
Aftermath
As of June, 2007, the case has still not been solved. There are no witnesses nor suspects. The Reverend Al Sharpton has joined with 'America's Most Wanted' in trying to solve the mystery of her murder, and has used strong language directed to the Black Community in presenting the case of her murder. See the Websleuths footnote below for further discussion.
External links
[1] CNN Transcripts, webpage features an article by Nancy Grace titled: "Murder of Brooklyn 16-year-old still Unsolved" which was aired January 1, 2007 at 20:00:00 Eastern Time. (NOTE: Rush Transcript notice)
[2] “4 Real Women International, Inc.” website, mentioning Chanel’s mother, Lucita Petro-Nixon, in the upcoming “First Annual "Survivors" Awards” to be held in January, 2008, as one of the Recipients
[3] Websleuths discussion of the murder of Chanel Petro Nixon and the Reverend Al Sharpton's involvement in the case (NOTE: last posting was July 31, 2006).
[4] The Theologians Cafe at Zanga.com.
[5] New York Post, June 18, 2007, article titled: "Year of Tears for Slain Teen", subtitled: "'Too Black' for City to Really Care" by Andrea Peyser.
[6] New York Times (Archives) article dated November 28, 2006 titled: "The Neediest Cases; After a Daughter's Death, Seeking Answers and the Strength to Go On" by Jennifer Mascia.
[7] New York Daily News, Friday, November 24, 2006, article titled: It's Time To Tame The Beast. Chanel's Killer is still free. There's a spike in Murder. Now, Crown Heights must speak up. by E. Louis.
[8] New York Daily News dated November 20, 2006, article titled: "Our War On Murder" - NYPD Commissioner Ray Kelly discusses crackdowns on killings in the City.
[9] New York Daily News dated November 20, 2006, article titled: "Cops ask if Slays are tied".
[10] New York Daily News Tuesday, October 10th 2006, 12:00 A.M., article titled: "It's Time to Speak Up".
[11] Bonnie's Blog of Crime website, article Titled: "Chanel Petro-Nixon Murder" dated August 12, 2006.
[12] African American (Black) Opinion.com website with Friday, August 11, 2006 article “Brutal Murder of "Perfect" Kid”.
[13] SaxTalk Website article titled: "Honors Student Murdered. SaxTalk wants to help"; dated posted: 8/1/2006 by Rex R. Djere.
[14]. An article in the "Crime and Justice", U.S. section in the forums website, using a July 5, 2006 New York Daily News article written by Kerry Burke, Jess Wisloski and Rich Schapiro; comments from Chanel's cousin, Erroll Wilson.
[15] Americas Most Wanted article on TV Show website titled, "Unknown Chanel Petro-Nixon Killer"; updated June 18, 2006.
[16] You Tube Website Slideshow titled: "R.I.P Chanel I really miss you".
[17] You Tube Website video titled: "Unknown Chanel Petro-Nixon Killer" video featuring Reverend Al Sharpton.
[18] Gawker.com article titled: "Today in Pretty White Girls in Jeopardy" comparing the deaths of Imette St. Guillen, Ramona Moore, Jennifer Moore, and Chanel Petro-Nixon.