SAN ANTONIO – Nearly a year after 17-year-old Kaitlin Hernandez was murdered, her family is still grappling with the loss and the questions surrounding her death.
Hernandez was found dead near her Northeast Side home on March 12, 2024. Now, the 16-year-old boy accused of her murder has been formally indicted by a grand jury.
Hernandez’s family, still mourning the tragic loss, says time has not lessened the pain. Crystal Rodriguez, Hernandez’s aunt, expressed the ongoing grief, saying, “I miss her so much, her smile, the sound of her voice.”
For the family, each passing day has brought only more heartache. Rodriguez added that the holidays have been especially difficult, where family members “just fake the smile” to endure tough moments.
“It’s been harder, the holidays, you just fake the smile,” she said.
As the one-year mark of Hernandez’s death approaches, the reality of the loss continues to set in.
“It’s already going on almost a year,” Rodriguez said, referring to the pain that has not eased with time.
Background
Authorities determined that Hernandez had been strangled to death. Her family says that the loss not only affected them emotionally but also took a part of them with her.
“He not only took Kaitlin that day but I feel he took a little piece of all of us with him with her that day,” said Rodriguez.
Daryl Barrera, who was 15-years-old at the time of Hernandez’s death, has been charged with her murder, authorities said.
During a certification hearing in early 2024, a judge decided that Barrera would be tried as an adult in the case. The decision was made based on a hearing where a psychologist testified about Barrera’s troubled background, including a history of self-harm, violent behavior and an admission to killing animals with a hunting knife.
Authorities said Barrera’s DNA was found on Hernandez’s body, and police linked the evidence to his involvement in her death.
Barrera had gone for a walk with Hernandez and returned home alone. He was arrested after DNA and other evidence connected him to the crime, according to authorities.
Hernandez’s family seeks justice
As the case heads toward trial, Hernandez’s family remains hopeful that someday there will be justice for Kaitlin and answers to the many questions they still have about her death.
“Maybe there won’t be so much heaviness in the heart, I don’t know, but we just want to know why,” Rodriguez said.
While awaiting trial, Hernandez’s family is preparing to honor her life on the one-year mark of her death next Wednesday at the location where her body was found.
“I don’t want her remembered for what he did to her. I want her to be remembered as a 17-year-old loving, smart jokester,” Rodriguez said.
Hernandez’s family is determined to preserve her memory for who she was in life rather than how she was killed.
