Home Alive did important work for 17 years. Unfortunately, the organization is no longer active. I think Home Alive changed many lives and changed attitudes about the importance of self defense as a tool for fighting back. The mission statement and the success of the group inspired many other groups to form, so there is a lasting effect.

I'm no athlete, but I feel confident that I could get away from a predator. In fact, learning self defense means "by any means neccesary". I will never own a gun because I don't want to acquire that skill. But Home Alive was not against using a gun for defense. It's better to know how to fight - kick, scream, punch, yell, and even bite - as a general mode of living in a dangerous world.

I had moved from Seattle and was not involved with the amazing activism, except on the periphery. Too many shocking things happened, and that night haunted me.

I was living on Martha's Vineyard, in a tent...long story, but it was a great tent, right on the lagoon, when I dreamed about Mia. It was a waking dream - I felt very conscious and my eyes were open, and she was above me. There is an ancient path right next to that tent site - deer used it to transverse the island. It's hard to describe - perhaps I dreamed her into being, perhaps her soul was restlessly looking for those who remembered her. But I saw her, and then saw all the deer go through the ravine and up onto the road and bound into the woods.

Ghosts. I was not alone - many people were seeing ghosts at the same time.

The cold case detectives were seeing ghosts.  Although the arts community had been frustrated by the initial police response, the cold case detectives got deeply involved in the case. There were only a few clues - and luckily there was the DNA. The leaps in DNA identification are amazing.

So when they got the case, well, they fell in love with her and her family and her friends. Mia's father had been walking her path for 10 years - pretty much every day - hoping that somehow he could find the moment, the crack in the sidewalk, the slight trip of her foot that led to her demise. Nobody knew what happened that night. There were so many theories - but no real clues.

In 2002 they retrieved the sample  (from the bite mark to her breast), and ran it through the database. There was a match. They could not mention it to anyone - but they located Jesus Mezquia who was living in the Florida keys. I'm not sure about Jimmy Buffett songs, because apparently the keys are where criminals go to hide.

There are many articles about this, but the most chilling part to me is: these detectives , who fell in love with Mia and her family and friends, who we would have probably not trusted when they were street cops - they flew to Miami to go get him. Miami International Airport. MIA MIA MIA. Everywhere they looked they saw her name. They talked about it in the aftermath - how it seemed like she was guiding them in some strange way.

And they got him. I got a phone call from Seattle, followed by many phone calls saying: "They got him. It's solved. They found the guy." 

Ten years of suspicion doesn't go away immediately, although it began to fade that day. For everyone. I feel like a collective sigh of relief changed the weather pattern that day.  

The story continues, but you can read about it online from respected journalistic sources, and a few disrespectful ones too.

Jesus Mezquia was tried for murder. He is a monster. He is so large and so terrifying  - I can't ( I can) I can't think about it at all.

To answer some queries: the death penalty was on the table. But Mia's friends and family , being amazing people who believe in social justice and don't believe in the death penalty said "No." Not because he wasn't guilty, but because too many have died innocent.

Mia worked hard for the "Books to Prison" project. The judge made a rare statement in the sentencing process.

 (to be continued)