<\/p>\n
Mendell Butler Lebel, left, was shot and killed near his Miramar home only one day after turning 17 in 2018. Kyandre John Baptiste, 16, was shot and killed in Broward County in 2023.<\/p>\n
Provided to CBS News Miami<\/p>\n
Grief did not end with their sons\u2019 funerals for two South Florida mothers. Years after their teenage sons were killed in separate drive-by shootings, both women are still waiting for answers. Their sons\u2019 cases remain unsolved.<\/p>\n
According to data analyzed by CBS News Miami from the FBI and the Broward Sheriff\u2019s Office, hundreds of homicides across Florida have remained unsolved over the past five years.<\/p>\n
For Claudine Escarment and Omorose Butler, their pain has become purpose.<\/p>\n
On April 22, 2023, 16-year-old Kyandre John Baptiste was shot and killed in Broward County. The Broward Sheriff\u2019s Office believes a vehicle seen in surveillance video is connected to the shooting.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe was going to the basketball court,\u201d Escarment said. \u201cI don\u2019t want to hear he was at the wrong place at the wrong time. He was riding a bike, eating a chip.\u201d<\/p>\n
Investigators have classified her son as a \u201ctrue victim,\u201d meaning he is believed to have been caught in violence not intended for him, Escarment said. More than two years later, she said the silence from investigators has been difficult.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m going to call them out, Broward Sheriff\u2019s Office, in two years, I\u2019ve heard nothing,\u201d Escarment said.<\/p>\n
Claudine Escarment CBS News Miami | May 2026 <\/p>\n
The Broward Sheriff\u2019s Office declined an on-camera interview, citing an active and ongoing investigation. The agency says a reward of up to $5,000 remains available for information leading to progress in the case. BSO says it has solved more than 250 homicides over the past five years, but 42 cases remain open, including Kyandre\u2019s.<\/p>\n
For Omorose Butler, the memory of July 2, 2018, remains vivid. Her son, Mendell Butler Lebel, had just celebrated his 17th birthday one day earlier when he was shot and killed just feet from his Miramar home.<\/p>\n
\u201cI see my son, and Mendell is lying lifeless on the floor, completely unresponsive, and to be honest, I collapsed,\u201d Butler recalled.<\/p>\n
The Miramar Police Department has released only a photograph of a suspected vehicle connected to the killing. Frustrated by the lack of answers, the teen\u2019s relatives say they have spent nearly $100,000 of their own money to fund a reward in hopes someone will come forward.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019ve had to dissolve 401(k)s and retirement,\u201d Butler said. \u201cBut what is a future without your children?\u201d<\/p>\n
Omorose Butler CBS News Miami | May 2026 <\/p>\n
According to the FBI\u2019s Crime Data Explorer, Miramar police reported 30 homicides in phe last five years, with five of those cases solved. The agency declined multiple requests for interviews but told CBS News Miami the department recently assigned a new detective to Butler Lebel\u2019s case and brought in the Florida attorney general\u2019s Cold Case Squad to help develop new leads.<\/p>\n
While both mothers continue pushing for justice, they are also finding ways to carry their sons\u2019 legacies forward. Escarment launched a foundation that is in Kyandre\u2019s honor and provides bicycles to underprivileged children. Butler has focused on education, funding a scholarship in her son\u2019s name for criminal-justice students at Miramar High School.<\/p>\n
Still, both women say their mission remains the same: accountability.<\/p>\n
\u201cSo, all that I ask is that you are held accountable for your actions,\u201d Butler said. \u201cBecause my son was innocent. He did not deserve to be murdered at home, where he should\u2019ve been safe.\u201d<\/p>\n
Escarment said she believes someone knows what happened to her son.<\/p>\n
\u201cNobody has been caught,\u201d she said. \u201cAnd I know people know.\u201d<\/p>\n