AUSTIN, Texas — Selena Quintanilla-Perez was just Selena to the millions who adored her, her music and what she represented to many Latinos in the U.S.
The story of her death – 26 years ago Wednesday – continues to resonate with fans who still try to understand how someone so talented, so positive, could have lost her life at such a young age.
It happened at a Days Inn in Corpus Christi in 1995 when she verbally confronted the president of her fan club and former manager of her boutiques who had embezzled money. Selena was shot in the back and died later at the hospital.
The woman who killed her – Yolanda Saldivar – held off police as she sat in her truck threatening to kill herself. She eventually surrendered. A jury found her guilty of murder and sentenced her to life in prison. Saldivar comes up for parole in 2025.
Just this year, Selena was remembered at the Grammy Awards when she was honored with a Lifetime Achievement Award. But sadly, such a brief life: She was just 23 years old when she died.
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