The gathering was not mournful but energized, as several dozens of people lined the sidewalk waving signs at passing cars and chanting Woodard\u2019s nickname, \u201cChello.\u201d Drivers honked in support as the crowd responded with raised fists, unified voices and calls for accountability.<\/p>\n
Woodard\u2019s girlfriend: \u2018He did not deserve this’<\/p>\n
Among those in the crowd was Woodard\u2019s girlfriend of two years, Chamell Henderson, who said she felt \u201cblessed\u201d by the community\u2019s support.<\/p>\n
\u201cMy boyfriend was killed for no reason. We\u2019re just out here trying to get justice,\u201d she told the Erie Times-News.<\/p>\n
The shooting happened near Henderson\u2019s house \u2014 in the 400 block of East 27th Street, between Parade and Wallace streets \u2014 shortly before 9:45 p.m. on July 2, according to family members<\/a> and the city of Erie.<\/p>\n Protesters hold signs and chant, “No justice, no peace,” at the inersection of East 21st and Parade streets in Erie on July 3, 2025, after the shooting of Marchello D. Woodard by a Pennsylvania state parole agent nearby there on July 2.<\/p>\n Pennsylvania State parole agents were conducting compliance checks when they recognized Woodard sitting in a parked car in the 300 block of East 27th Street, according to Pennsylvania State Police. When parole agents identified themselves, police say Woodard began driving away, dragging a parole agent in the process. The agent fired multiple rounds into the driver’s compartment before falling free of the vehicle, police said.<\/p>\n City of Erie police officers responded to the shooting and provided emergency medical care to Woodard, who later succumbed to his injuries at UPMC Hamot.<\/p>\n More: State parole agent fatally shoots Erie man. State police, DA’s Office are investigating<\/a><\/p>\n Erie police were not involved in the shooting, and the Pennsylvania State Police and the Erie County District Attorney\u2019s Office are handling the investigation, according to the city and the District Attorney\u2019s Office.<\/p>\n \u201cWe want people to realize that everybody\u2019s life matters,\u201d Henderson said. \u201cIt shouldn\u2019t matter whether you\u2019re black, brown, purple, white \u2014 whatever color. All lives matter. And he did not deserve this.\u201d<\/p>\n When asked about Woodard, Henderson paused before adding, \u201cHe was everything to everybody.\u201d<\/p>\n Calls for justice and unity<\/p>\n The gathering was organized by city residents Malcolm Pullium and Sarah Bridgett, who urged unity in the face of tragedy and called for the community to channel its frustration into peaceful demonstrations.<\/p>\n \u201cWe do not want violence,\u201d Pullium said. \u201cWe want peace, unity and most importantly, we want justice for Cello and his family.\u201d<\/p>\n Pullium said he first knew Woodard as a teenager and emphasized that his death struck at the heart of the very community where he was raised.<\/p>\n Concerned neighbors Sarah Bridgett, left, and Malcolm Pullium talk about the shooting of Marchello D. Woodard by a Pennsylvania state parole agent, during a vigil near the intersection of East 21st and Parade streets, in Erie on July 3, 2025.<\/p>\n \u201cHe grew up in this neighborhood \u2014 and somebody came into that neighborhood and took his life,\u201d Pullium said. \u201cWe are 150% sure that could have been prevented.\u201d<\/p>\n Bridgett asked attendees to wear white T-shirts to symbolize the \u201cpure love\u201d that Woodard showed the community.<\/p>\n \u201cHe was a man of his community \u2014 no matter what it was,\u201d she said. \u201cHis goal was to uplift them, to provide for them. He had a heart of gold and always wanted to stay out of harm\u2019s way.\u201d<\/p>\n Trelane Sherrod, a city resident and neighborhood watch president, said she didn\u2019t know Woodard personally \u2015 but as a mother of five sons, said the shooting hit especially close to home.<\/p>\n Protesters hold signs and chant, “No justice, no peace,” at the inersection of East 21st and Parade streets in Erie on July 3, 2025, after the shooting of Marchello D. Woodard by a Pennsylvania state parole agent on July 2.<\/p>\n \u201cWhen I learned about it, it broke my heart,\u201d she said. \u201cThat could have been one of my sons or nephews.\u201d<\/p>\n She added, \u201cI\u2019m here to show support because we are all connected in this community \u2014 not just because we\u2019re African American, but because everybody is related to somebody here.\u201d<\/p>\n Looking ahead: Peaceful march planned<\/p>\n Bridgett and Pullium said their work won\u2019t end with the July 3 gathering. They plan to lead a peaceful march on July 5, beginning at 3 p.m. at East 18th and State streets and heading south along State Street.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s unfortunate that situations such as this are what brings us together \u2014 but at the same time, we have to deal with it and make the best of it,\u201d Bridgett said.\u00a0“I just want us to accomplish a sense of unity.”<\/p>\n \u201cThis makes no sense\u201d: Mother wants answers to why Pa. state parole officer killed her son<\/a><\/p>\n A.J. Rao can be reached at\u00a0arao@gannett.com<\/a>. Follow him on X @ETNRao<\/a>.<\/p>\n (This story has been updated to include the most current information.)<\/p>\n This article originally appeared on Erie Times-News: Erie PA residents seek accountability in fatal shooting of city man<\/a><\/p>\n![\"Protesters](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/11\/957169776f7a9512b71a4eb3fdae9c70.jpeg\"\/)
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<\/p>\n![\"Protesters](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/640f83a03641d5d27331b2a0d6e1b853.jpeg\"\/)
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