Christian Hammock was the type of mother and friend that would always be there to cheer you up. The 28-year-old mother of four was that kind of person.

On Sunday, October 23, 2022, Hammock, was found fatally shot inside a vehicle at a West Memphis intersection. 

Police are investigating two suspects – one 18 years old and the other a 21-year-old, according to local media.

A friend of Hammock’s told TV station WREG that, “I pray that whoever did this faces the consequence to the max because her death is unjustifiable and she didn’t deserve this.”

West Memphis has been rocked by several shootings of black women this year, much like many American cities.

In a statement on social media, West Memphis police said:

On Sunday, October 23rd, 2022 at 2:34 am officers responded to the BP gas station located at the corner of West Broadway and South Avalon in reference to a person being shot. Officers responded to the area and located a black female in the passenger’s seat of a gray Nissan Sentra suffering from a single gunshot wound. EMS was called to the scene, but unfortunately, she did not survive their injuries. The deceased has been identified as Christian Hammock of West Memphis. Detectives made the scene and began their investigation into this incident. It was determined that the shooting took place in the 300 block of West Jefferson which required Detectives to work multiple scenes.

This is an active investigation and there will be more information released at a later time. We ask that anyone with any information regarding this incident contact the West Memphis Police Department at 870-735-1210.

Why Are Black Women Being Killed?

It is a question that has been asked since the founding of this nation – and the answer is seldom different: There is a deep disrespect for the black woman.

“The heightened vulnerability of Black women to violence should be seen and addressed as a crisis alongside the already recognized epidemic of Black male homicide,” Kimberlé Crenshaw, a Black feminist legal scholar, who is quoted in The Guardian newspaper.

“When you kill a Black woman, oftentimes you kill a cornerstone of the community, because there are a lot of people tied to her,” Cheryl Neely, a Michigan-based sociologist, told the newspaper.