Grieving families uplift one another while awaiting justice

HOUSTON - Tragedy often brings people together. 
Saturday made one week since one deputy was killed and two others were injured while working security at a northside club. 
That morning, the fiancé of Deputy Darryl Garrett joined with a family grieving their own loss to empower one another while holding onto hope for justice.

It's the first anniversary eve of when Terry Thomas lost the love of his life.
"I miss my baby so much. It’s so hard; it’s heartbreaking," says Thomas choking back tears.

Lajah Richardson has been on the brink of that feeling for a week. Her fiancée Precinct 4 Deputy Darryl Garrett is one of the three deputies shot while working security at 45 North Bar and Lounge.

"One minute I’m crying. One minute I am happy, or I’m trying to be happy," says Richardson.

Both lives were unbelievably changed by reckless actions they expect their offenders to face.

"I’m going to be there at every court date so I can see that he gets what he has coming to him," says Thomas. 
"My wife was a loving person. She was a wonderful woman, and God knows she didn’t deserve to leave here the way that she did."

Houston police say on October 24, 2020, an intoxicated Ricky Caballero Jr. slammed into the back of the vehicle Samantha Amos was driving, killing her. Thomas was in the passenger’s seat.
"When he hit us from behind, I felt like my jaw came out of my mouth. My neck broke. I had two fractures," he says. 
Thomas will have to wait until 2022 or later for a trial. He had only been married to Amos for 15 months.
"I met her as a young man, and I chased her for almost 30 years," he says.

Richardson continues to look forward to her wedding day. In a video she shared, Garrett is proposing with his friend Deputy Kareem Atkins cheering him on in the background. The proposal happened two weeks before the shooting that killed Atkins. Deputy Juqaim Barthen was injured and released from the hospital. As of Saturday, the suspect was still on the loose.

"I believe in karma, but I believe in God more than anything. I believe that God is going to bring all this to the light when it comes to the suspect," says Richardson.

The Key Event Space hosted a grief gathering for those dealing with loss. For Richardson, it was a break from ICU visits, and talks of kidney transplants and wheelchairs- the chance to focus on another family.

"We are here in remembrance of her and others," says Amos’s daughter Ceseley Lawrence. "She was a beautiful person, a beautiful mother of four. I’m her only girl, so I do miss my best friend."

"It’s hard to hold it on the inside when you love someone," adds Thomas. 
Instead of holding it in, they're sharing how they all can make it through. It’s support Richardson is grateful for while looking at the long rehabilitation ahead.

"That’s why I’m able to be there for Darryl and be strong for him. I can uplift lift him even more because I have people uplifting me," she says.