LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- Nearly a year after her son was gunned down in Louisville’s Russell neighborhood, a grieving mother is pleading for answers — and offering a reward in hopes of finding justice.

Cedrick Smith, 41, was shot and killed in July 2024 on West Market Street near 28th Street. His killer remains unidentified, and his family says the pain of his loss has not lessened.

"I have a lot of sleepless nights," said Roseanna Smith, Cedrick’s mother. "Our pain runs so deep in my family still. We just cry every day, praying that somebody will come."

Smith and her family are now offering a $5,000 reward for information leading to an arrest in her son's case.

"It’s so painful, and hurtful, and devastating," she said. "I just wish that anybody who knows anything would come forward — because somebody knows something."

Louisville Metro Police said the case remains open and active. Investigators contacted Smith last week with an update, but she said more needs to be done and arrests are not happening quickly enough.

Smith said she’s found some comfort in connecting with other mothers who have lost children to gun violence, but the emotional toll remains heavy.

"Now I know how they feel," she said. "It is unbelievable that people would actually murder people’s children — take their lives, their future, their destiny from their parents."

LMPD reports 46 criminal homicides in Louisville so far in 2025, with 22 of those cases closed. At this time last year, there had been 67 homicides with 27 cases closed.

The organization MOMS (Mothers of Murdered Sons and Daughters) plans to hold a walk to raise awareness about gun violence on Saturday, June 7, at Alberta Jones Park. Smith said she hopes the event brings both awareness and healing — for herself and for others still searching for justice.

"I want justice, peace, and closure," she said. "So hopefully, then, maybe I can rest at night."

Anyone with information about Cedrick Smith’s murder is asked to contact Louisville Metro Police at 502-574-LMPD (574-5673). All calls are anonymous. 

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