Charisse Stinson has been charged with her son's murder.
A community in Florida gathered this weekend to pay an emotional tribute to 2-year-old Jordan Belliveau, who authorities say was killed by his mother in a continuing saga that's grabbed the national spotlight.
A candlelight vigil was held at Saturday in Largo for family, friends, and people who may not have even known Jordan to mourn the terrible loss to the community.
Per WFTS, attendees lit candles and released balloons in Jordan's memory not far from where his body was discovered on Tuesday.
“There's so many people in this world that can’t have children and then these people that do have children don’t take care of them…kill them you know," mourner Thelma Gonzalez said. "It’s cruel and she needs to be put away for a very long time."
Belliveau’s father was among those at the memorial service and was at a point surrounded by people in a circle of prayer.
Earlier Saturday, others gathered about a mile away for a morning prayer.
The outpouring of grief comes at the tail end of a dramatic chain of events that began with what police say was a falsely reported Amber alert and ended with the arrest of Jordan's mother on a charge of first degree murder.
Police said 21-year-old Charisse Stinson told them a man she did not know named Antwan attacked her after she and her son got into his car.
The blow knocked out Stinson and when she woke, she was alone, she claimed.
Stinson has since allegedly admitted to striking Jordan “in a moment of frustration,” which “in turn, caused the back of his head to strike an interior wall of her home,” authorities said.
Her alleged admission came after days of searching for her son, during which Stinson "continued to mislead the investigation," police said.
Stinson had previously lost custody of Jordan, who was reportedly in foster care for about a year. The foster parents had hoped to adopt the toddler before a judge returned him to Stinson's custody.
In addition to a murder charge, Stinson faces felony counts of child abuse and misleading police.
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