It was the early morning of July 29, 2024; 4:00 AM to be exact. A loud pounding on our door jolted us out of our sleep. We’ve had knocking on our door in the middle of the night before whenever John had arguments with his girlfriend so we thought this was the case again.
Ronnie got up to answer the door. I then heard some murmuring in the kitchen downstairs. Usually after that, I would hear John come up the stairs, go to his old room and get into bed for the night to get some well-needed peace, quiet and sleep. But this time, Ronnie called my name and asked me to come downstairs.
I grabbed my robe and went down to the kitchen. When I got downstairs, I saw two men standing in front of the island. They introduced themselves as Detectives from the Columbus Police Department and asked if we were John’s parents.
Of course, we said “yes.”
Detective Jude proceeded to tell us John was in an argument with his girlfriend earlier that evening.
This was a common occurrence.
Ronnie then said, “Okay, so is he outside in your car? Does he need to stay here tonight?”
He looked at both of us and shook his head, no.
“I’m sorry, but there was a shooting last night, and John is gone. He didn’t make it.”
What?
Gone?
Gone where?
He’s dead?
I had to ask him to repeat what he said several times because I was still half asleep and not quite comprehending.
Was this a dream?
No, it was a nightmare that was all too real.
A mother’s worst nightmare.
My son was dead!
My son is dead?
I stood there in a daze and struggled to speak.
Ronnie stood a few feet away in total disbelief.
“Oh my God! No!” was all I could say over and over again as tears began to pour out of my eyes like water from a faucet. I honestly don’t remember what I did next but somehow, I was sitting at the top of the stairs crying uncontrollably.
Ronnie was crying too when he found me. He reached out his hand and escorted me back down to the kitchen to answer some questions from the detectives.
The detectives asked if we knew various people who were at the scene of the crime but we weren’t familiar with them. We only knew John’s girlfriend. He would complain about the kind of people she associated with, criminals and addicts. The kind of people John was never around growing up because we didn’t raise him that way. He told me there were times, in the past, drug addicts would come knocking on their door and he had a major problem with that. He also didn’t like who she allowed in the house and they argued about it. Because of that, he never wanted me there and I didn’t want to be there either.
Now look what happened to him. My son knew it was best for me to stay away from there.
When I was able to think more clearly, I began to ask the detective for the exact details. They couldn’t tell me because the crime was still under investigation. I don’t even remember him mentioning the name of the killer but I’m sure he did. I knew it was the 18-year-old kid who I thought was John’s girlfriend’s nephew. This nephew began coming over to their house three months prior to John’s murder. A kid who John said was “trouble”. Someone John didn’t want anywhere near their house or him.
But his girlfriend didn’t listen. She kept letting that kid come to their house and now my son was dead. Murdered by someone who doesn’t value life. By someone who shouldn’t have even been there.
John’s life mattered!
Why did this happen?!
I didn’t have much time to sit and ponder why. Since the next of kin had been notified, Detective Jude told us the news would then be able to update their initial story and share John’s identity with the public.
He advised us to notify our family and friends as soon as possible. We should tell them about what happened to John, not the news.
The detectives turned to walk toward the door.
“Wait” I said.
“Can we go see John? Where is he?”
Detective Jude shook his head and said “Not at this time. The Coroner will give you a call, but his body won’t be released until the autopsy has been completed and you have a funeral home that can go pick him up.”
Again, the tears began to stream down my face as I said,
“But I want to see my son now! “He’s in a cold dark place and he’s all alone. I need to be with him. I don’t want him to be alone!
Detective Jude said he understood but there was protocol that must be followed since this was a homicide. I was then handed his business card and told the Prosecutors would call me soon to discuss the legal process and to call him if I had any questions about the case. He reminded me again, to call my family as soon as they left because John’s name would soon be released to the public.
And with that said, they were out the door.
Ronnie looked at me in disbelief and I still had the look of horror all over my face. We hugged each other and cried for what felt like an eternity but in reality, it was just a few minutes because we had phone calls to make, and these calls were the most difficult calls I’d ever made.
The first call was to my sister, Cindy, who lives out of state. I call Cindy my “sister-mom” because ever since our mother passed from colon Cancer in 1999, Cindy has become like a mother to me. She’s my confidant. She’s my rock and luckily for me, after telling her the horrific news, she was on the next flight to Columbus.
I needed her now more than ever.
We then had to tell my daughter and granddaughter, John’s eight-year-old daughter, what happened to him. I thought it would be best to tell both of them in person, and these were the most heart-wrenching conversations I’ve ever had, especially to my granddaughter.
Absolutely heart breaking.
Ronnie then made phone calls to break the news to his family while I also called a few more people on my side as well, including my brother who couldn’t believe what I was telling him.
Not John.
I still can’t believe someone murdered my twenty-eight-year old son.
He was so young and had his whole life ahead of him.
And now my life will never be the same.
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