With a pain that drowns them when they speak, Soledad Peralta and Juan Pablo Orellana, recounted the events before and after the death of their daughter Valentina Orellana Peralta inside the Burlington Coat Factory store in North Hollywood.
Valentina, 14 years old, died the day before Christmas, shortly before noon when a stray bullet pierced the wall of the dressing rooms where she and her mother tried on dresses, while agents of the Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) tried to paralyze a suspect who was assaulting customers with a bicycle chain.
Soledad said that she and her daughter went shopping and on the way to the store they were talking about the young woman’s future. Valentina had a dream of becoming an engineer, but first an American citizen. The young woman and her mother had been living in the United States since June of this year.
“He had gotten good grades, he loved his school and wanted to go to college, ”Soledad said at a press conference Tuesday morning in front of the Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) headquarters in downtown.
When both were in the dressing room measuring their clothes for the Christmas celebration they heard some screams.
“We sat on a seat hugging each other and prayed when something hit my daughter Valentina and threw us to the floor,” said Soledad.
She saw a white powder come out of her daughter’s body and she began to have seizures. At that moment, Soledad hadn’t noticed that Valentina had been shot, but in a matter of seconds her little girl’s body was already flaccid.
“I tried to wake her up by shaking her, but she didn’t wake up,” said her mother.
Once she reacted to what happened, Soledad began to ask for help shouting. When the police arrived they took her out of the dressing room and left Valentina’s body on the floor.
“She died in my arms. I couldn’t do anything when I saw my daughter, ”Soledad said, unable to hold back her tears. “Seeing a daughter or son die in your arms is the greatest pain that a human being can imagine.”
Family reunion that did not happen
Valentina’s father, Juan Pablo Peralta, was in his native Santiago de Chile and had already planned to leave his country to settle in Los Angeles with his wife and daughter. However, that December night 23 she received a call from Soledad telling her what had happened. He couldn’t believe it since just a day before they had talked, they were making plans to go to a Lakers game in January and also to a recital once he arrived in two weeks.
Valentina also told her father that she had already left on vacation from high school. He was happy because he passed all his subjects with flying colors, especially math and physics, which was so hard for him. Even from school they sent her congratulatory letters for her great performance.
“She was a dedicated, hard-working student. All he wanted was to study robotics and he was preparing, ”said the father, adding that Valentina was his only daughter.
Juan Pablo trying to hold back his tears, but he couldn’t. “I can’t describe the heartbreaking feeling I’m going through, especially on these special dates where my daughter had asked me for so many gifts and I couldn’t open them with her.”
Juan Pablo, like Soledad, confirmed that his daughter’s dream was to be an American citizen. Previously, he had proposed to return to Chile again and she refused.
“He told me, ‘no dad, this country is the safest in the world, the country of opportunities.’ Now my daughter is dead, “he said, assuring that he is living a nightmare. “Seeing how everyone is going to wait for the new year and our world fell apart. They destroyed us as a family, they destroyed us as parents. ”
The memory of a happy girl
At the conference they did not talk about the legal steps to take and they only limited themselves to talking about what the little girl was like in life. They said that his favorite color was pink and lilac and he liked to skate. In fact, his Christmas gift, a skateboard, arrived in the mail on 24 December, the day after his death.
“She asked for this gift… We didn’t know that she had asked for this gift to go to her school on a skateboard. It is new, unopened. Now I will leave it to her grave so she can skate with the angels, “said Juan Pablo.
Valentina’s parents asked for justice for the minor and assured that they will not rest until she is held responsible to the guilty.
Everyone, one by one is going to fall and that I promised my daughter, “said Juan Pablo. “Now I have to bury my daughter’s box where she said it was the land of dreams.”
The LAPD published a series of videos that demonstrate what happened inside the store, including the shooting. However, he has not released the name of the agent who shot and killed Valentina; although they stressed that he is under paid administrative leave.
At Tuesday’s press conference, activists carried banners identifying the LAPD agent as William Dorsey Jones and calling for him to be turned over to the authorities.
A second press conference led by the California League of United Latin American Citizens (LULAC), on the same Tuesday afternoon, called for transparency, ensuring that the LAPD uses “reckless” tactics to stop threats.
LULAC California requested a meeting with LAPD agents to demonstrate the protocol that was followed in this case.
The Burlington store said in a statement that they are devastated by the tragic incident that occurred at the North Hollywood store.
“Our main priority is always the safety and well-being of our clients and associates. This is an ongoing investigation and we are supporting the authorities, “the company said in a statement.
Valentina’s relatives have created a GoFundMe page to raise funds for her funeral. If you like to donate visit: https://www.gofundme.com/f/justice-for-our-valentina-orellana-peralta?qid=76d358422 f0a 80 d 270081568 d 9916385