COLUMBUS, Ohio — Da’Mya Cummerlander was at a graduation party over the weekend when she was shot and killed, her family said.
The shooting happened in the 2600 block of Woodsedge Road early Sunday morning. According to the Columbus Division of Police, arriving officers responded to the scene and found Cummerlander suffering from a gunshot wound. She was pronounced dead minutes later.
Cummerlander had just turned 18 years old in May and was set to start a new job at a nursing home with her cousin this week.
She graduated from New Albany High School in 2023 and was figuring out what she wanted to do with her life, even considering joining the Army.
“Da’Mya loved everybody. She was very caring, fun to be around and she had a whole life ahead of her -- a whole life and she had so much to look forward to because she was a unique individual. She was not the average kid,” said her mother, Monique Thompson.
Her mother said her death was senseless.
“Everybody is just devastated and speechless right now. It is just hard to cope with -- to think that someone would do something so evil like that for no reason. She didn’t do anything to nobody," Thompson said. "People say she was in a good mood that night. They was having fun, she didn’t have an attitude or anything. It was for no reason."
Da’Mya leaves behind a sister, two brothers, her dog Cutie and a large extended family.
“This wasn’t supposed to happen,” said her father, Daron Cummerlander.
As of Monday, police have not identified any suspects in the shooting.
Her family plans to push for justice.
“I just want people to know that Da’Mya was loved, and we are not going to rest until we get justice and the person who committed the crime is behind bars,” Thompson said.
Anyone with information is asked to contact Columbus Police's Homicide Unit at 614-645-4730 or Central Ohio Crime Stoppers at 614-461-TIPS (8477).