Family Remembers Earl Lorenzo Farley 20 Years After Unsolved Death
ST. PAUL, Minn. (WCCO) -- After 20 years, there is still no justice for a family in St. Paul. Earl Lorenzo Farley was an only son and father to four boys.
The 28-year-old was killed in a hit-and-run along University Avenue West this month two decades ago. Police still have not made any arrests.
Farley was killed across from a recording arts high school on Oct. 7, 1999. It's where his only sister now works, and 20 years later it's become a place for his family and friends to gather and remember -- but not in a typical way to grieve.
"We don't really like to dwell on stuff. We just like to have fun," said Earl's son, Tamon Farley.
"He was a positive person," said Earl's other son, Earl Farley Jr. "He was always joking. That's probably where I get it from."
Tamon and Earl Jr. Farley are now in their 20s, but were only one and six years old when their dad was killed in a hit and run. Police say Earl was leaving the now-closed Arnellia's Bar when he was hit by an SUV.
"[It] feels like yesterday to me," said Earl's mother, Earnestine Farley-Wingo. She said he was killed just six days before his 29th birthday.
"That was the worst week for me in 1999," she said.
To mark 20 years without Earl, his only sister lead the group in a balloon release near the crime scene.
"To my brother: I love you so much. You have taught me so much," his sister said.
No arrests leaves a lot questions -- and after 20 years of wondering the family isn't sure they want answers.
"At first, I said, 'I wish somebody could be caught and we could go to trial and stuff.' But it's been 20 years," Farley-Wingo said. "If I had to go through that today, I don't know if I could live through it."
Instead, this family is focusing on what they do have.
"Each one of his sons has a piece of him that I see," Farley-Wingo said.
Anyone with further information about this case is asked to call the St. Paul Police Department at 651-291-1111.
