Family and friends of Miya Marcano gathered in Pembroke Pines to mark the five-year anniversary of her death and honor her memory.
The public came together to hold a memorial procession in the city and reflect on her legacy on Saturday.
“What we want to do is to keep Miya’s name alive. We want everyone to know about Miya’s Law. We don’t want anyone to forget her face, we don’t want them to forget what happened to her,” said Semone Westmaas, Marcano’s aunt. “We want every lease and office, every apartment complex, every tenant to understand that Miya’s Law did pass in the state of Florida.”
The then 19-year-old college student vanished from her apartment complex in 2021, and her body was discovered a week later.
An autopsy ruled that her cause of death was a homicide, and a suspect in her death was a maintenance worker.
Miya’s Law, which was signed into law in 2022, strengthened renter safety and enforced background checks for apartment employees.
