Michael Blakely says the woman he spent 32 years with will always be his wife and that he will not remarry. The remarks come after Shirley Blakely was found dead inside her own home Thursday morning. The Jacksonville Sheriff's Office has not released a person of interest or charged anyone in connection to the case.
Family of Shirley believe they know who is responsible for her death.
“I know she's smiling down on us," Kayla Orr, Shirley's daughter, said. "My momma was an amazing woman and for her to get murdered in her own home is sad," said daughter Kayla Orr.
For some, a home can just be a place to sleep, but the family of 54-year-old Shirley Blakely said home is where you would find Shirley all the time.
Thursday morning friends and family, including Shirley’s daughter Kayla Orr, stood in shock.
“I just want my momma to know I love her and I know she’s still helping us from above.”
The tragedy is not just affecting one family on the block.
“Somebody killed her because they say she put a curse on them because she listened to religious music on her porch.”
Shirley’s family believe the man who is responsible for her death is their next-door neighbor’s son. The family only knows him by the nickname of 'Bam'.
Outside of Shirley's home, you can see markings. The markings the family believe is from Bam shooting at the home days earlier on Sunday.
Her family had people stay with her the next few days for safety, up until Wednesday night when her husband Michael went to work. That’s when they believe Bam hopped the fence, broke the bedroom window and stabbed her seven times.
Kayla said it was her brother who would found their mother inside.
“How we knew it was him, she was able to point," Orr said. "When my brother found her and she was dying, she was taking her last breath, she could point to the wall next door and 'Bam'", that’s all she could say; 'Bam.' That’s how we knew who did it."
The neighbor's mother told First Coast News she spoke with detectives this morning, and her son Thursday morning.
She said she wants her son to be safe and that he should turn himself in if he's a suspect.
The mother added that she is grateful however that Shirley’s family next door is allowing them space as well.
“I don’t want people to blame the family next door, because people hear the next-door neighbor's son did it, they're going to come after them. It’s not their fault they didn’t have anything to do with it, he is at fault," Orr said.
The Jacksonville Sheriff's Office has not released a name or made an arrest at this point.