TUCSON, AZ (Tucson News Now) -
Friends of 10-year-old Johnny Cataline held a memorial service today to remember the boy, police say, was strangled to death by his own mother.
Tucson Police say Jean Cataline, 49, called 911 on Jan. 30 to report that she had strangled her son with a cord.
Johnny Cataline later died at the hospital, and authorities upgraded Jean Cataline's charges to include first-degree murder.
"Because of varying circumstances, we didn't get a funeral to bring closure to the life of Johnny Cataline," says family friend, Sarah Robinson.
She organized the service.
"We have four children and we saw some of them holding their emotions in and some of them would cry and let them out," says Robinson.
Breay Davis used to babysit Johnny. The 17-year-old says the ceremony gave her a sense of peace.
"Some of it made me feel like he's still here, like the candle made me feel like he's still here and I shouldn't be sad," says Davis. "So it made me smile."
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