In this bad economy, a new business is thriving, but it's not one to bring a smile to your face.
The hot new thing are R.I.P. T-shirts, most often worn by friends and loved ones of homicide victims.
Most have a picture of the victim with a message of the loss.
The Oakland Tribune spoke to the owner of All In One Stop, which is a store in San Leandro specializing in memorial clothing. Sherri-Lyn Miller said she makes 10 to 50 memorial shirts a week.
When four Oakland police officers were killed in the line of duty earlier this year the t-shirt order topped 700.
Miller said sold 300 T-shirts in memory of young Sandra Cantu, the Tracy child who was allegedly killed by her neighbor.
Miller told the paper the the shirts started as a small outlet for the families as a way to keep the story of the loved one in the public's eye.
Now, sadly it is becoming part of the Bay Area cultural fabric.
