The family of Stephanie Vil, the 34-year-old Burlington, New Jersey woman who was shot and killed in Trenton, New Jersey last week created a GoFundMe page to help support Vil’s two young children.
Tanisha Hill, Vil’s aunt by marriage, described the devastation Vil’s murder has had on her family in particular her two children. “Steph was a daughter, a niece, a friend, but most importantly, Steph was a phenomenal mother.” Hill also added that a coward took away so much with “one bullet”.
At approximately 9:06 a.m. on Sunday, February 12, 2023, Trenton police responded to a ShotSpotter activation and Trenton Communications received calls for a female shot in the area of Prospect Street and W. Hanover Avenue. Patrol officers arrived and found a Black female with a gunshot wound lying in the street next to a heavily damaged vehicle. She was pronounced deceased at the scene at 9:19 a.m.
Jamar Leonard, 38, of Burlington, New Jersey is charged with Vil’s murder, possession of a weapon for an unlawful purpose, unlawful possession of a weapon and certain persons not to possess a weapon. The prosecutor’s office has filed a motion to detain Leonard pending trial. Despite having been charged, every defendant is presumed innocent until found guilty beyond a reasonable doubt in a court of law. Click the link if you would like to donate to the Ta’Lil and Ja’Lani GoFundMe page.
