Interfaith leaders held a prayer vigil in Bridgeport Thursday to remember all of the city's homicide victims since the beginning of last year.

The Rev. John Olson of United Congregational Church says he got inspiration for the vigil from a similar memorial he saw advertised in New Orleans.

"We remember the dead on Memorial Day. We remember the dead on Veterans Day," he said. "All the religious groups remember the dead. Why shouldn't the city remember the dead of violence? Maybe it will help us overcome it."

Church leaders of different faiths spoke during the service, and the names of every victim were read aloud. 

The city's police chief, AJ Perez, says the department solved 19 of 23 homicides last year.