EAST BATON ROUGE PARISH, La. (WAFB) - A rose is often seen as a symbol of love or compassion, but it can also represent grief and loss.

That’s why the East Baton Rouge Parish Prison Reform Coalition chose roses as the centerpiece of a vigil this week honoring men and women who have died in custody over the past several years.

“Roses are very life affirming, but roses are also symbolic that there’s a loss,” said Rev. Alexis Anderson, a member of the coalition.

The group defines “in custody” as anyone detained, under arrest, in the process of being arrested or incarcerated. Since 2012, Anderson said, dozens have died in East Baton Rouge Parish custody.

Anderson noted that some of those people died before they had a chance to appear in court.

“We’ve had a lot of people that died pretrial

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