Mother of Slain 9 Year Old Buys a New Car With Donations: Is That Wrong?

The GoFundMe money raising system on the Internet has been widely used for emergencies, including burial expenses, disaster relief, or even business investment capital. People give because they believe in the cause. The recent execution style slaying of 9 year old Tyshawn Lee was heartbreaking, and people readily came to the aid of his mother Karla Lee, donating more than 17,000 to the GoFundMe account set up to take care  of burial expenses. When she recently purchased a 2015 Chrysler 200, the car dealer felt compelled to report it to the news media, and a backlash of criticism of Ms. Lee soon followed. She insisted that she made the down payment with her own money from her job, and that she needed to feel safe (obviously her family still has enemies among the gangs) but images of a selfish young black mother using burial funds to buy a new car have permeated the airwaves and social media. This morning Tyshawn will be laid to rest in a funeral ceremony at St. Sabina Church. Is Karla Lee being unfairly attacked? What measures to insure her safety have family, friends and community members offered? Will her son's father continue to draw enemies that threaten the safety of his loved ones? Was her purchase of a car the necessary thing to do to protect herself from harm?