791- My Sister Was Killed At Trader Joe's with Albert Corado

·40 min·3 clips

Albert gets a call saying his sister Mellie was shot, then his best friend tells him she didn't make it.

The episode is a re-airing of an interview between host Christine Blackburn and guest Albert Corado, focusing on the death of his sister Mellie Corado. Albert begins by describing July 21st, a normal day working at two cafes in Minneapolis when he received sequential calls from his father and brother about an active shooter at Mellie's Trader Joe's in Silver Lake. He tried calling and texting Mellie with no response, then turned to Twitter for updates, tweeting a public plea for information. As the situation unfolded, he learned from a Trader Joe's representative that Mellie had been shot, but her condition was unknown. Shortly after, his best friend and Mellie's roommate, Angel, informed him that Mellie had died. Albert details the chaotic hours that followed: he attempted to fly home immediately but couldn't get a flight until morning, received calls from news outlets like CNN, and grappled with the shock. He flew to LA the next day, reunited with his devastated father, and had to identify Mellie's body at the morgue. Albert reflects on his close relationship with Mellie, forged after their mother's death when they were teenagers, and how her loss has reshaped his life. He moved back to LA permanently to be with his father, describing their daily companionship as a source of strength. The conversation shifts to the circumstances of Mellie's death: she was killed by police crossfire when an assailant, who had shot his grandmother, crashed near the Trader Joe's and ran inside. Albert criticizes the LAPD's decision to shoot into a crowded store. He mentions visiting the Thousand Oaks community after a mass shooting to offer support, noting the shared experience of grief. Albert reveals that his family is preparing to file a lawsuit against the LAPD, a process he says is drawn-out but necessary. He expresses a desire to advocate for victims in the future, though he acknowledges the grief is still raw after four months. The episode concludes with Christine encouraging listeners to support Albert on social media.

As heard by us

A brother's account of sudden loss moves through shock, grief, guilt, memory, and the need to face what followed.

Albert Corrado's account of learning that his sister, Mellie, had been shot at Trader Joe's gives Storyworthy a somber center. The episode moves through the early confusion of calls, texts, Twitter updates, and word from Trader Joe's that she had been shot and might not have…

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Why you'd press play

You want a personal account from a brother learning his sister Mellie was killed at Trader Joe's.

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