Rally held for slain woman who would have given birth Wednesday

On a day that was supposed to be filled with joy over the birth of her grandson, Tamara Coleman spent Wednesday begging for help finding the person responsible for killing her daughter Maryiah.

Coleman, her family, and about 50 members of the Winburn community gathered downtown in front of Lexington’s courthouses to keep the public’s attention fixed on the shooting that occurred on Sept. 7.

“It’s been a very hard day for all of us; I didn’t want to get up this morning,” Coleman said. “I still have to get justice for my daughter. I have to carry on until someone is arrested.”

Maryiah, 22, was eight months pregnant when she was shot and killed outside the Matador North Apartments on Winburn Drive. Her unborn son, Jakobe, died at University of Kentucky Chandler Hospital. On Sept. 20, Lexington police asked for help finding a man with dreadlocks and a cast on his arm. The man was not considered a suspect; other witnesses said they saw him run from the scene, police said. A $1,000 reward has been offered by Bluegrass Crime Stoppers in exchange for information that leads to solving Maryiah’s killing.

People at the rally Wednesday were asked to sign a petition calling for more security measures around Winburn.

Coleman has been in regular contact with Lexington police since the shooting; calling detectives at least twice a week for updates. Those detectives were at the rally Wednesday and declined to comment.

One of the people in attendance at the rally was Kentucky state Sen. Reginald Thomas, who represents the Winburn area.

“We have to get control over the extreme number of guns we have in the community,” Thomas said.

This story was originally published October 12, 2016 at 7:24 PM with the headline "Rally held for slain woman who would have given birth Wednesday."