Porterville woman murdered by her husband during domestic dispute

Neighbors gather to mourn loss
By Aaron Burgin, The Porterville Recorder

More than 50 candles glowed against the dark night sky Monday night on the 1800 block of West Aurora Avenue, illuminating the faces of those who suffered the loss of a sister and a friend.

Wax dripped slowly from the long, ivory candles. Tears streamed from people's faces.

And as Hank Williams Jr.'s “Old Habits” throbbed from a black Chevrolet Suburban, the 60 people present at Monday's vigil weeped for a woman, gunned down Sunday night, who they said was a habit they did not want to break.

“She was my sister,” said Sonya Moncibaiz, a close friend of Crystal Hicks, who was shot and killed, allegedly by her husband Mark, inside the home that the crowd congregated in front of Monday.

Ashes still mark where police placed sirens to close off the cul-de-sac crime scene, the house still decorated with white Christmas lights and a lone angel in a front window.

“She was a diamond in the rough,” she said about her friend of 15 years. “I can't put into words how my heart weeps for her.”

But she tried - on a piece of white butcher paper, one of four set up on the house's garage for people to submit a written expression.

But it's hard to write how you feel about a person when you swear they are still there, Sonya's sister-in-law Vanessa Moncibaiz said.

The sisters coordinated Monday's vigil.

“We were in denial,” Vanessa Moncibaiz said. “I remember hearing the sirens when I was at work, but I did not think that I would hear later on in the night that it was her.”

As news of the killing spread across the city, many of Crystal Hick's friends reacted in the same fashion as the Moncibaiz sisters - shock and disbelief.

Vanessa said there was no indication that a domestic cauldron was bubbling over that would eventually lead to the death of her friend.

“It's so out of character that this would happen to her,” Vanessa Moncibaiz said. “You just wouldn't think that this would happen.”

But friends said they would not speculate as to what occurred Sunday night between Mark and Crystal Hicks. It's not their place, they said.

All they can do is remember her for who she was, a beautiful mother and a faithful friend, and console one another as they learn to cope with life without Crystal.

“Beautiful” by Christina Aguilera blared from a woman's cell phone, and a dozen of Crystal's friends sobbed as verse became chorus.

“I am beautiful, in every single way, words can't bring me down...”

The sisters said they wanted to thank everyone who attended the candlelight remembrance, and said they were surprised at the turnout.

“We only bought 50 candles,” Sonya said. “This just shows you how loved she was by this community.”

This story was published in The Porterville Recorder on December 13, 2005
http://www.portervillerecorder.com/articles/2005/12/13/news/local_state/news04.txt