Family, friends gather to honor slain Conn. teen

Associated Press

MILFORD, Conn.

Connecticut Gov. Dannel P. Malloy, classmates and others paid tribute Monday to a slain Connecticut teenager, saying she lived a remarkable life and implored others to learn from her example.

Malloy called Maren Sanchez a star, saying she was inclusive, kind, talented and giving. He said she accomplished so much in a short period of time and affected so many.

The 16-year-old was stabbed to death Friday morning inside the high school, just hours before she was to attend her junior prom with her boyfriend.

Malloy spoke at an outdoor vigil at Jonathan Law High School on Monday night that featured the release of purple balloons, Sanchez’s favorite color, and songs in her memory. Other speakers implored the crowd to live like she did.

The memorial started with a large rock spray-painted purple, her favorite color, with her first name, birth date and a heart painted in white. It grew to include flowers, stuffed animals, balloons, candles and notes. Purple ribbons were tied around trees by the school. People also were dressed in purple.

Police and the suspect’s defense attorneys have declined to identify the teen charged with murder, but people who saw him taken into custody said he was Sanchez’s friend Chris Plaskon.

The case was expected to go before a Juvenile Court judge in New Haven on Monday, but it’s not clear whether that happened.

Under state law, murder cases involving 16- and 17-year-old defendants are automatically transferred from Juvenile Court to adult Superior Court. It’s not clear when that will happen.

One of Plaskon’s lawyers, Richard Meehan, said his client is in a hospital under psychiatric evaluation.