CHARLOTTE — Community members in South Carolina are having a gathering Monday night to remember a teen who was killed in June after meeting someone through an online dating site.
Friends said 18-year-old Jacobs Williamson was as funny, quirky, and caring.
Promise Edwards said Williamson lived with her family during his process of transitioning.
“I wish people would’ve taken enough time to get to know his heart, and who he really was instead of who the world forced him to be,” Edwards said.
Edwards believes the world is darker after Williamson was allegedly killed by a man he met online.
The Union County Sheriff’s Office said Joshua Newton picked up Williamson in Laurens, South Carolina, and killed him at his home in Monroe.
Investigators believe Newton’s girlfriend Victoria Smith helped hide the body.
Loved ones said the fight for justice for Williamson will continue.
“You took a permanent good person from everyone, someone with a pure heart,” Edwards said.
Amberlyn Boiter with PFLAG Spartanburg organized a vigil for loved ones in Williamson’s hometown of Laurens.
“Being an out-transgender person in society comes with some risks,” Boiter said.
Mental health professionals were on site to provide support.
Dozens of people wore purple shirts as a symbol of LGBTQ youth.
“I think it says that he was kind,” Boiter said. “He was strong, and our community is a community of kindness and love.”
Edwards made it a point to thank Union County investigators.
She said a detective made it her mission to find Williamson and kept her word.
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