Families gathered at Wilshire Park Elementary School Friday evening to mourn the loss of third-grade teacher Mayra Jimenez, who prosecutors say was killed by her firefighter husband in their North Hollywood home.
Many tears fell as children, parents and friends remembered “Miss Mayra” – a dedicated 46-year-old teacher whose violent death devastated the Koreatown school community.
Mayra’s husband, Andrew Jimenez, 45, was arrested Wednesday and charged Friday with murder, according to the LA County district attorney’s office. If convicted as charged, he faces up to 26 years in prison.
The crowd at the vigil was so large that it filled the road leading to the school, where a lot of flowers and prayer candles were placed to build a memorial for the murdered teacher.
Friends, colleagues and students laid flowers for slain teacher Mayra Jimenez at a memorial at Wilshire Park Elementary School on Friday.
(Gina Ferazzi/Los Angeles Times)
Sarah McNeill, Mayra’s best friend, said she was well-loved by the Wilshire Park community and brought warmth to every room she entered.
“He always had a smile on his face, and his generosity, his advocacy, and his love for his students and colleagues was evident in everything he did,” McNeill said. “She’s a teacher who took breaks to give students extra support, called a teaching colleague to book lesson plan ideas over the weekend and went shopping to find the right things to make her classroom fun and engaging.”
Karen Chacon said Mayra changed her family’s life by giving her child the special care she needed to succeed in the classroom.
“Mrs. Mayra was not just a teacher,” said Chacon. “She was someone who really sees children as they are and believes in who they can be. When our child needed more care and support, Ms. Mayra did not back down, she moved forward.”
Colleagues remember Mayra as a dedicated teacher and active member of the teachers union who spoke up to support the needs of her students and other staff.
Bryant Ruiz kept his arm around his 9-year-old son, Ian, who was a student of the teacher who was killed by Mayra Jimenez.
(Gina Ferazzi/Los Angeles Times)
“Mayra was an activist, an advocate, a leader, a friend, and most of all a beloved teacher,” said Cecily Myart-Cruz, president of United Teachers Los Angeles. “His love for his students was paramount, and he worked hard, stayed up late, and always led by example.”
Mayra Jimenez’s body was found early Wednesday morning when Los Angeles Police Department officers checked her home in North Hollywood at the behest of her husband.
Inside, police found him slumped to death and a subsequent investigation linked Andrew to the murder, officials said. Authorities say he used an ax to kill her.
A lawyer retained by Andrew’s family told ABC7 that before he was killed, Andrew read a diary in which his wife explained that she had committed adultery.
Andrew Jimenez is a longtime firefighter and paramedic who has been with the Glendale Fire Department since 2008. He has been placed on administrative leave, according to the city.
“The domestic violence death of Mayra Jimenez is a sad reminder of the ongoing epidemic of intimate partner violence in our communities,” LA County Dist. He said. Nathan Hochman said in a statement. “No one, including those sworn to protect others, is above the law, and we will hold the defendant accountable for this heinous crime and bring justice to Ms. Jimenez and her loved ones.”
