The wrong message

Re “Police seek man in death of model,” Aug. 19

The murder of Jasmine Fiore is a tragedy. So is the last sentence in the article, a quote by Fiore’s mother: “Jasmine is pretty feisty and doesn’t back down easily.”

In one short sentence, the focus of Fiore’s murder shifts to her personality and away from the alleged perpetrator’s culpability. Being feisty is not a reason for murder.

In light of continuing victim-blaming, especially when it comes to violence against women, linguistic shape-shifting is a serious problem.

Shira Tarrant

Los Angeles