JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — A Jacksonville family is torn apart, after a beloved Arlington business owner was shot and killed outside his shop Monday.
"He had a big heart, he was so generous to his loved ones" Lateshia Taylor, the victim's sister said. "He was a hard-working man."
James Taylor, 48, operated JT’s Tires Shop on Arlington Road for 12 years.
“He loved that shop. His customers loved him. The community loved him. You didn't just come up there to get a tire," she said. "You got some jokes. You got some laughter. Nobody was a customer, everybody was a friend."
Lateshia said their extended family was excited to go on a vacation together this upcoming weekend. Now, they’re making funeral arrangements for her brother, James Taylor.
“I lost my best friend. I lost my brother at the hands of my own nephew," she explained through tears. "But my heart still loves my nephew. I can't be angry at him, because I know he has an illness. It just breaks my heart that we are here today."
James Taylor Junior, 27, served in the Air Force for four years, Lateshia said.
“My nephew, when he came back – somebody that you don't even recognize," she described.
James Junior has been diagnosed with Paranoid Schizophrenia, Lateshia said, and has episodes where he believes there was a chip implanted in his brain.
Lateshia’s son, who was there, told her James Junior went to his father’s shop Monday to get answers from him.
According to the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office, he shot James multiple times.
“He's not a murderer. He is a good kid. He's never been a trouble. He's never been arrested," James Junior's aunt explained.
She said her nephew doesn’t remember anything, and is filled with remorse.
“This is very hard, but we're going to get through this as a family," Lateshia said.
The Taylor family wants James to be remembered, and his legacy to continue.
"We're going to come back. We're going to open JT's Tires Shop. And we're going to be bigger, and we're going to be better. We're gonna continue to do what he loved.”
Help is available if you, or anyone you know, may need help with a feeling of hopelessness or with mental health concerns.
You can the National Suicide Prevention Hotline 24/7 at 800-273-TALK or text HOME to 7-4-1-7-4-1 to chat live with a trained crisis counselor.