14-year-old California girl arrested for murder of Kendra Reana McIntyre, daughter of nonprofit executive director

US News

From Nicholas McEntyre

A 14-year-old girl has been arrested and charged with the March murder of a California woman who was the daughter of an activist who advocated for victims of human trafficking.

The unidentified teenager has been named as a suspect in the March 21 shooting of 20-year-old Kendra Reana McIntyre, who was shot while walking in a part of South Los Angeles known for sex work and human trafficking, KFSN reported.

Investigators said McIntyre was a victim of human trafficking himself, the source said.

McIntyre was shot about 4:20 a.m. March 21 while walking near the southeast corner of 70th and Figueroa streets, the LAPD said in a news release Tuesday.

McIntyre was taken to a local hospital where she was pronounced dead.

The 20-year-old’s mother, Debra Rush, is co-founder and CEO of Breaking the Chains, a Fresno-based nonprofit that operates a safe house whose goal is to “break the chains of human trafficking for survivors.”

According to its website, the organization works with local state and federal law enforcement agencies to “provide hope, healing and restoration to lives affected by human trafficking.”

Rush said her daughter had “childhood trauma” and suffered from “severe mental health issues.”

“My daughter never had the chance to unlock her vault,” Rush wrote in a statement obtained by ABC 30. “Even though we stood outside, knocking on the door, crying and begging them to open it.”

According to KCAL, the LA Medical Examiner’s Office determined that McIntyre was shot in the head and neck.

The South Bureau Homicide Unit, which investigated the killing, identified the teenager as a suspect two months after the shooting.

The LAPD did not disclose how the teenager was named as the prime suspect.

She was arrested Monday without incident.

On Tuesday, the Los Angeles District Attorney’s Office filed a murder charge against the teenager.