“As many of you may know, my brother Carl was recently murdered in a violent road rage incident. Though the defendant is in police custody awaiting the preliminary trial, the path to justice will be long and already I find myself lacking the resources to not only ensure that Carl's estate is handled respectfully and correctly, but also to make sure that my own finances are taken care of as well.

I have had little time to grieve, as I am essentially the only member of Carl's immediate family remaining to handle his passing, and I have been living under stress for a long time myself. I have so much to work through mentally, emotionally and financially; and I am barely running on auto-pilot. I hate asking for help and was hoping to be able to handle all of this by myself and with some help from family, but at this point, anything can help with getting my life back on track.

While I'm incredibly thankful for the support of the Victim's Assistance Department at the Parker Police Department for their aid in flying me to Colorado and covering funeral home costs, these only scrape the surface of the costs I am facing currently.

In addition to settling all of Carl's affairs, I will potentially need to hire an attorney to receive legal advice for Carl's estate and the estate of my grandfather, which Carl was handling prior to his passing as executor of my grandfather’s estate. My grandfather's estate attorney will also need to be paid, and additional complications have arisen regarding my grandfather's estate, which I will also need to handle.

Furthermore, though the state of Colorado will defend Carl as a victim in the criminal case, any further financial justice I might choose to pursue to assist with these costs would require me to personally hire an attorney.

Additionally, at the time of Carl's passing, I was in the middle of applying and interviewing for jobs after my move from Philadelphia to Indianapolis. Myself and my partner have been experiencing extreme financial strain and debt for the past year, and moved to be near my partner's family for support this summer. In order to handle the details associated with Carl's passing, my already difficult search for a job was put on hold, and any costs that this process incurs will not be able to be paid out of pocket by myself or my partner.

My partner took two weeks off of work to accompany me to Colorado, and though she has been able to receive support from her family, they have at this point helped us to the full extent to which they are currently capable. I also owe two of my family members for money lent to me during my trip to Colorado, that covered hotel, car rental, etc expenses, all of which already exceed three thousand dollars.

On top of that debt, we are now behind on rent and several other urgent bills, including repairs to both of our vehicles (one of which is completely non-functional) and vet costs for our cat.

You might also know that I have also handled the passing of both of my grandparents, as well as my uncle, within the past few years. I’ve taken time off of work, worked with lawyers and attorneys, and had to take breaks in my career in order to do so. Carl did the very same. We had a very difficult upbringing and had so much on our shoulders, and I am absolutely heartbroken that Carl never got the chance to move forward with his life--he had such a bright future ahead of him, and that was so swiftly and violently taken from him.

At this point, I am very stressed about the financial aspects of the entire situation--from being able to make sure things are handled for Carl to simply trying to pay rent and survive day-to-day while I figure all of this out.

So many people have asked if there’s anything they can do, and though I hate to so blatantly ask for financial help, I was truthfully already deeply struggling before all of this happened, and am struggling even more to move forward in the wake of it. I truly appreciate any support you can offer and am unspeakably grateful that so many people have reached out in support of Carl. I hope that I can continue fighting to get justice for him.”

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Hello everyone--for those of you who don’t know me, I’m Monica, Cheyenne’s partner. Because this has been an incredibly difficult time, and because I have been assisting her in handling our collective finances as well as any costs incurred, Cheyenne has asked me to manage this GoFundMe. Our finances are in a joint account, where any money raised from the GoFundMe will be deposited for whatever Cheyenne might need in relation to this situation. The above statement is from Cheyenne.