Family, friends, and community members are mourning the tragic loss of Jessica Hoyle, a beloved first-grade teacher from the Bronx, who was fatally shot by her boyfriend in what loved ones are calling a senseless act of domestic violence.
The suspected shooter, Shannon Graham, later died by suicide as police closed in.
The 31-year-old educator, known for her warmth and commitment to her students at the Children’s Aid College Prep Charter School, was found shot in the head around 11 p.m. on April 1, 2025, at her Mickle Avenue home in Williamsbridge, authorities said.
The heartbreak deepened when Graham, 35, was discovered dead two days later from a self-inflicted gunshot wound in an Eastchester apartment as law enforcement attempted to apprehend him.
At a candlelit vigil Monday evening, Hoyle’s longtime best friend Tessa Attareb voiced her anguish.
“Whether he killed himself or not, whether we got justice or not… to me, is it really justice? Because she’s gone,” Attareb said tearfully. “God is gonna deal with him.”
Attareb, who met Hoyle in 2012 while working at Marshall’s in Harlem, said their bond grew stronger over the years as they attended Bronx Community College and later worked together at the same charter school. She had helped Hoyle land her teaching job—one that quickly became a calling.
“She took care of her family, and she was a dynamic teacher who cared and loved her students,” said Bishop Boyde Singletary, an anti-domestic violence advocate who helped organize the vigil. “She loved her job and she loved her friends.”
Singletary, like others at the vigil, described Graham as an “evil coward” and called attention to the ongoing crisis of gun violence and domestic abuse that continues to claim the lives of women in New York and beyond.
According to law enforcement sources, Hoyle and Graham had been arguing throughout the day of the shooting. Hoyle’s mother, Lisa Cabassa, who uses a wheelchair and lives on the lower floor of the home, told police she heard a loud bang before calling 911.
Cabassa, still visibly shaken at the vigil, described her daughter as the family’s rock.
“She took care of me when I was in the hospital,” she said. “I don’t know what to do now.”
Dozens of blue balloons were released into the sky by family and friends chanting “Long live Jessica!” in an emotional tribute to a woman remembered as selfless, positive, and deeply loved.
Hoyle’s death is the latest reminder of the urgent need for domestic violence prevention and community support systems. Advocates continue to call for better protections for women and more awareness around the often-hidden signs of abuse.
💜 If you or someone you know is experiencing domestic violence, help is available. Contact the National Domestic Violence Hotline at 1−800−799−SAFE (7233).
