Jordan Timothy Ashley was walking from a bus stop to his home in southwest Atlanta when he was shot and killed on Aug. 22, 2012. Ashley was walking home from work around midnight when he became the victim of a seemingly random robbery, police said.
Howard Ashley, the victim’s uncle, said at the time, “He catches the train to the bus, and then he walks the quarter mile home every evening … and someone or some people just took his life.”
Ashley was discovered less than a mile from the entrance of his Reunion Place subdivision on Danforth Road.
His family said at the time that Ashley had graduated high school with honors and was working at the airport to save enough money to pursue his dream of becoming a marine biologist. Shortly after Ashley’s death, police canvassed the area and developed composite sketches of potential suspects, but the case has since turned cold.
Wednesday night, Ashley’s mother was among those who gathered to ask for the public’s help in finding the person responsible.
“The memories are just horrible, horrible,” Carlyn Ashley said. “I think of the monster that took my child’s life. However I am hopeful. Without hope, life remains lost.”
New billboards throughout southwest Atlanta are announcing a reward of up to $5,000 for tips and information regarding the homicide.
Police believe Ashley was the victim of an armed robbery. Two other armed robberies took place in the same neighborhood on the same night that Ashley was shot, Atlanta police Capt. Adam Lee III said at the time. The victims in all three incidents were apparently chosen at random.
At the time, Michael Ashley, the victim’s father, said of his son, “This is not a random person. He has a family who loves him … and we want these people to be found.”
The billboards announcing the Crime Stoppers reward were purchased by the Fulton County District Attorney’s Office and funded in part by Atlanta City Councilmember Keisha Lance Bottoms. The reward is being offered for credible tips and information leading to an arrest and indictment.
Bottoms also spoke Wednesday night, where she said that Timmy Ashley was working hard and trying to go to school at the time he was killed.
“My heart breaks every single day when I pass the memorial for Timmy,” Bottoms said. “My heart breaks as a mother and it breaks as a member of this community.”
Anyone with information on the case is asked to contact Atlanta police or Crime Stoppers at 404-577-TIPS.
“I am not going to rest until we find my son’s killer or killers,” Carlyn Ashley said.
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