The family of slain University of Colorado student David Parrish remembered him Tuesday as a young man with a wry sense of humor and someone who appreciated and respected the cultures of the world.
Parrish was shot last week in Mexico when he attempted to thwart the armed robbery of his mother, CU-Boulder lecturer Janet Graaff, in Puerto Vallarta, where they had gone over CU’s spring break.
The family said in a statement that Parrish, a graduate of Boulder High School, relished seeing the world, other cultures and photographing the people and places he visited.
He was a junior in the geography department at CU and was on the dean’s list.
“He never wished to hurt a soul, and he was a friend to all,” said the family. “Truth with humor and kindness, justice with love and fairness, and beauty in all things — these were David’s principles and how his family will remember him.”
Parrish traveled extensively. In the spring semester of his sophomore year, he studied abroad in Morocco and traveled throughout the North African country. In Morocco, he met Lina Cohen of Los Angeles, and their relationship continued up until the time of his death.
A memorial service honoring Parrish will be at 2 p.m. Friday at St. John’s Episcopal Church, 1419 Pine St., Boulder.
In addition to his mother, he is survived by his father, Stephen, of Boulder; his sister, Lesley, at Colgate University in New York; his paternal grandparents, Graeme and Grace Parrish, of Cambridge, N.Y.; and his maternal grandparents, Jannie and Clare Graaff, of Cape Town, South Africa.
The family suggests contributions be made to any organization that provides “new, lightly used or reconditioned shoes” to the less fortunate.
Two Mexican judges said they accidentally released a suspect in the shooting death of a vacationing University of Colorado student.
Municipal judges Jesus Roberto Gomez and Jorge Alejandro Garcia appeared before the Public Ministry Tuesday amid an investigation into how a man accused of killing 21-year-old David Parrish of Boulder, Colo., escaped from jail.
City officials said Monday they wanted to know why Gomez issued a release order and two jail employees let the suspect go on Friday before dawn — an hour at which releases are unusual. The jail employees were being held Tuesday at a state prison.
Police initially said suspect Alfonso Ramirez tricked guards into releasing him by switching clothes with a cell mate, who was being held for allegedly stealing a bottle of liquor.
The judges, who have protection orders preventing them from being arrested, said Tuesday they intended to released the liquor suspect because prosecutors had not pressed charges against him and 36 hours had passed since his arrest.
U.S. Embassy spokeswoman Judith Bryan said the killing, which allegedly happened during a robbery, was the first fatal shooting of an American in Puerto Vallarta the Embassy has on record. About 1 million Americans visit Puerto Vallarta each year.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
