Funeral arrangements being made for Raleigh shooting victims

WUNC | By Jason deBruyn,

Will Michaels, Mitchell Northam, Associated Press

Published October 19, 2022 at 7:41 AM EDT

A vigil was held in Raleigh's Headingham neighborhood on Monday, Oct. 17, 2022 for the five people who were shot and killed on Thursday, Oct. 13.

Updated at 1:40 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 18.

Funeral services for Raleigh police officer Gabriel Torres have been scheduled for this weekend.

Torres was one of five people killed in a mass shooting in the Hedingham neighborhood of northeast Raleigh last week. His visitation on Friday and funeral on Saturday will both be open to the public. Friday’s visitation will be held at The Chapel of Mitchell Funeral Home, while Saturday’s service will be held at Cross Assembly Church, according to Torres’ online obituary.

The other victims in the shooting included Nicole Connors, 52; Susan Karnatz, 49; Mary Marshall, 34; and 16-year-old James Thompson. A woman and a second Raleigh police officer also were wounded.

Details about the people killed last Thursday by the 15-year-old white male shooter are starting to trickle out, and folks have been remembering them fondly. Karnatz was an avid runner and the mother of three boys. Connors was was the “rock” of her family and knew everyone in the neighborhood. And Marshall was Navy veteran whose wedding was two weeks away.

Torres, 29, was on his way to work when he was fatally shot in the Hedingham neighborhood, police said. Raleigh Police Chief Estella D. Patterson said Torres was not in uniform or in his patrol car at the time of the shooting, according to the News & Observer.

This photo provided by the Raleigh Police Department shows Officer Gabriel Torres, one of the victims of a shooting attack that stretched from the streets of a Raleigh neighborhood to a nearby walking trail last Thursday.

Torres was on the job for 18 months. Before that, he served as a U.S. Marine at Camp Lejeune in Jacksonville. Torres served in the Marines for more than four years, obtaining the rank of sergeant.

“We ask all of you to please pray and keep in your thoughts Officer Torres and the other victims of this senseless act of evil,” the Raleigh Police Protective Association, an advocacy group for officers, said on Facebook.

Back the Blue NC, a nonprofit that advocates for law enforcement officials, launched a fundraiser for Torres’ family through GoFundMe. It had raised more than $94,000 as of Tuesday morning.

Torres is survived by his wife and a young daughter.

According to the News & Observer, Torres is the first Raleigh police officer killed in more than 20 years.

Services for other victims

The family of Mary Marshall held a private service Monday night. They are planning a larger service for Oct. 29, which would have been the day she married Rob Steele.

Tracey Howard is the husband of Nicole Connors. He is arranging plans to hold a burial and memorial service in Dayton, Ohio, where the couple was from.

The North Carolina Roadrunners Club has honored the memory of Susan Karnatz, an avid runner. A memorial service will be held Saturday afternoon at North Raleigh Presbyterian Church for her.

Go-Fund-Me pages have been set up for these four victims, as well as for Lynn Gardner, a victim who survived, but is still hospitalized and will likely need multiple surgeries.