Hundreds of mourners filled Second Ebenezer Church in Detroit to say a final good-bye today to 7-year-old Aiyana Stanley Jones, who was cut down last Sunday by a police bullet when officers raided her home looking for a murder suspect. According to the Detroit News report from the funeral service:
Teen music artist Justin Bieber's song 'Baby' is being played. It was Aiyana's favorite.
The Rev. Al Sharpton will eulogize the girl who has come to symbolize the plight of a city stunned by a wave of recent gun violence. Her funeral was set to begin at 11 a.m….
The Detroit Free Press provided additional, heart-breaking detailis:
Wearing a silky pink skirt and jacket with white socks and sparkly pink shoes, Aiyana held a pink rosary entwined in her fingers and a pair of small glasses.
She was flanked by floral arrangements shaped like a heart from her mother and father and an angel. There was also a collage of notes from friends, a pencil drawing of the young girl and a huge vase of flowers including pink roses from the law firm of Geoffrey Fieger, which is representing Aiyana’s family in a lawsuit against the Detroit Police Department.
The shot that killed little Aiyana was fired by Officer Joseph Weekley, a member of the Detroit Police Special Response Team. He has been given a desk job while the incident is investigated.