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# A year later, crash victims mourned
- URL: https://www.smdp.com/a-year-later-crash-victims-mourned/
- Published: 2004-07-15T15:00:00.000Z
- Updated: 2026-10-23T04:43:53.000Z
- Author: Carolyn Sackariason
- Tags: Business, Promenade, #archive-import

THIRD STREET PROMENADE — A small crowd gathered here Wednesday just before the Farmers’ Market got underway, remembering those who lost their lives a year ago, and praying for victims still healing after being struck by a Santa Monica man who drove through the outdoor market.

To mark the one-year anniversary of what many describe as the most horrific day in Santa Monica history, clergy members held a re-consecration of the site where Russell Weller, 87, drove through the market, killing 10 people and injuring 63 on July 16, 2003.

Under the hot morning sun and amidst noises from the market’s activity, a group of about two dozen people prayed, sang and recited words together in an effort to find closure and heal the wounds of the past year.

For Maria Martinez, whose sister-inlaw Gloria Olivera Gonzalez was killed at the market, being there Wednesday didn’t make grieving much easier.

“It’s like reliving it all over again,” she said, as her family gathered around her, many of them weeping.

As difficult as the memories and the losses are for the victims and their families, coming together brought resolution for many of them.

![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/55/9f/559f9abc-8372-4a2e-8c2d-27386da4e363/content/images/2026/10/071504-01_01.jpg)

Kariem McKnight is surrounded by co-workers Curly Holden and Steven Elam from Step Up on Second, and others on Wednesday during the memorial ceremony at the Farmers’ Market. (Photo: Carolyn Sackariason/Daily Press)

*Originally published in the Santa Monica Daily Press print edition on July 15, 2004.* [Read the original PDF.](https://s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com/smdp%5Fbackissues/071504.pdf?ref=smdp.com)