Staff / The El Paso Journal
Thursday, February 23, 2023 | 22:15
The crosses.— A Las Cruces-based New Mexico State University (NMSU) graduate who went to work as a photojournalist in Florida was injured during a shooting that left his co-worker and a 9-year-old boy dead .
Spectrum News 13 photojournalist Jesse Walden and reporter Dylan Lyons were in an unmarked news vehicle Wednesday afternoon covering a homicide in the Orlando area when a man approached them and shot them, according to police.
Jesse Walden, 29, has been identified by his employer, Spectrum News 13, as the photojournalist who was shot alongside his colleague Dylan Lyons, 24, allegedly by 19-year-old Melvin Moses, while reporting on a shooting former.
Walden remained at the hospital Thursday, where loved ones said he was alert and able to communicate, the WESH news station reported.
The Orange County Sheriff’s Office identified the slain female victims Thursday as 9-year-old T’yonna Major, whose unidentified mother survived the shooting, and 38-year-old Nathacha Augustin. Authorities previously said she was in her 20s.
Walden is a recent transplant from the Sunshine State who also worked for WOFL-TV, a Fox station in Orlando, and previously worked for KSTU in Salt Lake City, Utah.
He described his career on his LinkedIn page as “using visual storytelling to show human connection.”
Fellow journalists offered prayers for Walden, who also previously worked in Albuquerque, New Mexico, from 2016 to 2020.
“Please pray for Jesse Walden this morning,” WOFL reporter Amanda McKenzie wrote on Twitter. “I had the opportunity to work with Jesse last year and I look forward to his recovery.”
Journalist Ryan Elijah wrote: “Say a prayer for Jesse Walden this morning. The News 13 photojournalist was seriously injured in the shooting that killed his colleague Dylan Lyons on Wednesday.
Walden’s professional YouTube portfolio contains dozens of videos, including in Orlando, where she recently covered stories about a millennial buying her parents’ house and the homeless at Christmas.
He shared his tips on getting hired in the media in a YouTube video, describing how he landed his first job as a news photographer after graduating from New Mexico State University with a degree in creative media and video.
“When I was a senior at NMSU, I was a film major and I wasn’t really interested in TV news. But that changed one day when I got an email from our dean saying there was another job opportunity open for us,” he says in the 12-minute clip.
“I thought, ‘Oh, this is paid work. They pay me to edit and they use Adobe Premiere. Wonderful!’” He recounted his work as chief video editor at the student-run station that aired on PBS.
Walden was shot while working at the scene of a homicide investigation in Pine Hills, where Moses allegedly fatally shot Augustin sitting in her car early Wednesday.
Moses allegedly returned to the scene several hours later and opened fire on Spectrum News reporters, then stormed a house on Hialeah Street, where he allegedly killed T’yonna and seriously injured her mother.
The suspect was charged with one count of murder in the morning slaying and is expected to face additional charges in the second and third shootings, police said.
Walden was shot while working at the scene of a homicide investigation in Pine Hills, where Moses allegedly fatally shot Augustin sitting in her car early Wednesday.
Miller described how Lyons was close to his mother.
“I remember in different social media posts that he put out, how appreciative and appreciative he was that his mom helped him get to where he was, whether it was graduating from UCF or going into business,” he said.
“The number of people who will miss him, I’m sure, I can’t even imagine how many,” Miller added.
