JACKSONVILLE, FL- He was an honest man, trying to make an honest living when he was murdered. That is what Terri Reed had to say about her husband, Crandall “Jack” Reed. He was shot to death inside his taxi cab on November 16, 2007 in an attempted robbery.
Time has done little to numb Terri's pain over losing her husband. Before driving a cab, Jack served in the US Navy for 20 years, survived Desert Storm, but lost his life in spray of bullets near the Boys Scouts of America building off Edgewood Avenue.
"I think they said he [the attacker] shot 21 bullets, one hit Jack," said Terri.
Somehow he was able to drive away, but crashed in a nearby convenience store parking lot and died.
"I don’t understand, why him? Because you wanted to rob somebody, because you are too lazy to go to work?" told Terri as she sat in her home, her anger over the murder still evident.
She has her husband’s urn sitting on a small table next to her front door. Next to it a flag given to her at his funeral since he was a veteran and a bear made from one of his favorite sweatshirts sits on the table as well surrounded by wedding pictures.
"You are taking this life off this earth, that is somebody’s son, father, brother, uncle, grandfather and you don’t care. You do it so cold blooded," she said.
She added that any money Jack had on him at the time, he would have just turned over to the robber, there was no reason for him to be shot.
JSO’s cold case unit is working this case and says it does have some new leads.
"We are following up on some tips and leads in that particular case, I can’t talk to the details of that case because it is an active one, but I feel promising about it," tells Sgt Dan Janson with the Cold Case Unit at the Jacksonville Sheriff's Office.
"We all have to answer someday and really that is our only judge, I mean at the end of the day, when you die you have someone to answer to. How are they going answer to him? You can’t, you murdered somebody," said Terri.
If you know anything about the murder of Crandall "Jack" Reed call CrimeStoppers at 1-866-845-TIPS or the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office non emergency line at 904-630-0500.