HAMPTON, Va. — Hampton podiatrist Dr. Earnest Mawusi refuses to look at pictures of the 18- year-old Buffalo mass shooting suspect, who is accused of killing Mawusi's Aunt Ruthie.
"I don't want to give this individual any energy."
Buffalo Police allege the self-proclaimed white supremacist drove to the Tops grocery store on May 14 and shot 13 people with an assault rifle, killing 10.
Ruth Whitfield, 86 was one of the victims who died in the massacre.
"Aunt Ruthie is the aunt who would hang out with the younger people; she had a nose piercing, she was 86 years old," Mawusi fondly recalled. He described her wonderful smile, great hugs, and vibrational spirit. "We all have our down days but she is the one who is usually up."
Mawusi, who grew up in Buffalo, first heard the news of the mass shooting from his sister. Both were stunned that their hometown was the site of the latest shooting tragedy. As they were speaking over the phone, Mawusi got a text from a cousin.
The tragedy had hit home.
"He sent a text and said it's urgent. And he told me it was about Aunt Ruth and that just started the cascade of emotions. Family just started calling family to let everyone know that the mass shooter in Buffalo actually hit our aunt."
Whitfield was going about her usual routine. She made daily visits to a nursing home where her husband, Mawusi's uncle, lived.
"She would go and see her husband and iron his clothes for the week."
After leaving the home, she stopped by the nearby Tops Friendly Market along Jefferson Avenue.
The suspect had posted a 180-page manifesto online, detailing a plan to target a predominantly Black neighborhood. He is now charged with first-degree murder.
The racist motivations behind the attack make the tragedy even more difficult to bear for Mawusi.
"I think that people are saying that I hope that more laws get on the books for this, that and the other but laws do not change hearts and mindsets."
Eventually, he said, he will probably see a picture of the suspect, but for now, he'd rather not.