PORTSMOUTH, Va. — Alaejah Johnson was welcoming her father home from the grocery store on February 27 at their Allard Road home in Portsmouth when a stray bullet pierced the side of the family's home and struck her in the head, killing her instantly.
Police said the 22-year-old special needs woman was the unintended target of a drive-by shooting in the neighborhood.
"You're in your house where you're supposed to be safe, and as a father not being able to protect her, or just do something to prevent this, it's been hard," said Rashed Johnson, Alaejah's father. "The sadness, the confusion, the anger. [We feel that] every day."
The Johnson family said while Alaejah was classified as intellectually delayed, she was the brightest light of their family.
"[Doctors] labeled her special needs, but she was here to teach us how to be special. She was here to show us that genuine love. How to love," Johnson shared emotionally as he said more than 200 people came to his daughter's funeral earlier this month.
Family and friends created a GoFundMe campaign to help the Johnson family during this tragedy.
A Portsmouth Police Department spokesperson said investigators have not named any suspected gunmen in Alaejah's death.
Her parents hope sharing the beauty of her life and the pain of her absence convince someone who knows something to come forward.
"If it happened to you, you would want someone to come forward and help your family out to get the peace that they need," said Mary Johnson, Alaejah's mother. "If nobody speaks up, the change will never come."
Portsmouth detectives urge anyone with information about Alaejah Johnson’s death to call them at 757–393–8536 or the Crime Line at 1–888-LOCK-U-UP. You can also reach the Crime Line at **TIPS (**8477), or submit an anonymous tip through the Crime Line’s “P3 Tips” app or www.portscrimeline.com. Crime Line tipsters are never asked to give their name or required to testify in court. If a caller’s tip leads to an arrest, they could be eligible for a cash reward of up to $1000.
