Like most 17-year-olds, Melody McFaddens life lay before her. It was the summer after her high school graduation, and she had earned a scholarship to attend the University of South Carolina, Columbia.

Then gun violence upended her family. McFaddens mother, a victim of domestic abuse, was shot in the head by her boyfriend after she attempted to escape the relationship. He was sentenced to 21 years for the killing and served 11.