LAS VEGAS (KLAS) — Family and friends gathered for a vigil Friday to honor 3-year-old Journei Ross a week after she was stabbed and killed.
“Full of laughter,” Phalan Whitson said. “She was always a happy baby.”
Whitson, Journei’s mother, told 8 News Now she will always remember her daughter as a beautiful soul.
Whitson, Journei’s father Jeremy Ross, and other family members held a vigil Friday outside the apartment complex where she was found dead on March 26, near Flamingo Road and Eastern Avenue.
“This is all for Journei,” Ross said. “You know, the journey continues.”
Loved ones lit candles, shed tears, and released balloons while reciting “We love you Journei,” all to grieve a life taken before it could truly start.
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Family and friends gathered for a vigil Friday to honor 3-year-old Journei Ross a week after she was stabbed and killed. (KLAS) -
Family and friends gathered for a vigil Friday to honor 3-year-old Journei Ross a week after she was stabbed and killed. (KLAS) -
Family and friends gathered for a vigil Friday to honor 3-year-old Journei Ross a week after she was stabbed and killed. (KLAS) -
Family and friends gathered for a vigil Friday to honor 3-year-old Journei Ross a week after she was stabbed and killed. (KLAS) -
Family and friends gathered for a vigil Friday to honor 3-year-old Journei Ross a week after she was stabbed and killed. (KLAS) -
Family and friends gathered for a vigil Friday to honor 3-year-old Journei Ross a week after she was stabbed and killed. (KLAS) -
Family and friends gathered for a vigil Friday to honor 3-year-old Journei Ross a week after she was stabbed and killed. (KLAS)
“It was amazing seeing her grow,” Whitson said. “And I won’t be able to see that anymore.”
Marketta Phillips, 41, faces an open murder charge. The Las Vegas Metropolitan Police Department said she stabbed the child multiple times in the torso, legs, and neck, according to police documents.
Phillips, who lived with Ross for about a year, according to documents, was allegedly watching Journei while her father was at work.
Phillips told detectives she “snapped” and wanted to “get back at him,” an arrest report said.
“That lady needs to be prosecuted,” Whitson said Friday, speaking on her hope for justice. “She needs to be prosecuted for what she did.”
Ross and several family friends also spoke on the importance of mental health.
“Talk with your loved ones, talk with your family, talk with your friends,” Ross said to the crowd. “Because you never know what they might be going through.”
There was more pain, shock and sadness than many could imagine, but the people who knew Journei best believe she will always be with them.
“She really impacted my life,” Whitson said. “She made me strive to do better, she made me want to do that.”
Whitson told 8 News Now she also plans to start a non-profit organization in honor of Journei.
Phillips is being held at the Clark County Detention Center without bail. Her next court appearance is scheduled for May 13.
