Dartmouth rally held to stop violence, support homicide victim's family

The family of a man shot to death this week thankedneighbours for theirsupport during a peace rally Saturday in Dartmouth.

Dozens gathered to march and rememberRickey Walker, 48, who died Thursdayafter calling 911 to say he had been shot.

"It's really sad that something like this brings people together," his sister, Bettina Wog, said.

"This has got to stop. We have to all pull in together, and we have to stop it because it's just not right."

'We're not going to take this'

Participants began their marchfromJohnMacNeilElementary School onLeamanDrive, where Walker was found. They includedmany who never met him, such as Dartmouth North MLA Joanne Bernard.

"Somebody made a choice a couple of nights ago to pull a gun and to shoot somebody," Bernard said at the rally.

"We're here today to say we're not going to take this, and we're going to take our community back."

• Rickey Walker 'was just an amazing person,' says former colleague

'Too far out of hand'

Walker's death, ruled the ninth homicide in the Halifax area this year,was killed just over a week after26-year-old Tylor McInniswas found dead.

Ceasefire Halifax, a violence-reduction group, organized Saturday's gathering. It has plans to recruit members for community response teams this monthin an attempt to better prevent violence.

"The violence has gotten way too far out of hand. I mean, one is too many, but this is just crazy," community mobilizer Amanda Bradshaw said.

'Never one to give up'

Those who knew Walker remembereda kind friend, agood co-worker and also a hero.He once received anaward from St. John Ambulancefor rescuing a drowning man, his sister said.

"Rickeyjust fought to get down there and get him. He said it was so dark downthere, he couldn't see anythingbut he did pull him up," Wog said.

"He wasn't giving up. He was never one to give up. He was a really, really good guy."

'Defies all explanation'

Bernard noted that just in the last week, the "resilient"community marched to remember another homicide victim, Jason McCullough. In 1999, the 19-year-oldwas shot while walking through a Dartmouth park, now named in his memory. McCullough's deathremains unsolved.

"Rickeywas someone that was harmless, that did everything for everybody, was very proactive in the non-violentcommunity, in peace protestsand it just defies all explanation," Bernard said.

"It's adevastatingtime for his family, for the community."

• Halifax homicides: Remembering the victims