On January 28th, 2025, Life After the Impact dove into a case that has left the Rockford community reeling for nearly a decade.

On April 16, 2016, 34-year-old Valentia Jovan Fresco was tragically killed during an altercation with two security guards from Metro Enforcement, a private security company in Rockford. The incident escalated when one of the guards, Ryan Bruce Mattingly, allegedly struck Fresco, choked him, and eventually opened fire, ending his life on a public street outside an apartment complex.

Now, almost nine years later, the accused guards—Mattingly and Alijon Khalil—are facing first-degree murder charges, but the Fresco family’s quest for justice has been hindered by eight years of legal delays. With the case still stuck in the courts, the family is asking: why has it taken so long for this case to go to trial?