DECATUR, Ga. — Loved ones remembered a DeKalb County man shot and robbed at a bus stop in February. Family and friends reflected on the life of 41-year-old James Dean Saturday at his funeral while waiting for police to catch his killers.
Dean's family remembers him as a giving man. They said that's exactly what he was doing in the hours before his death by helping a friend at his home. He went to a Decatur bus stop after wrapping up, and that's where two men ended his life.
“My family, we're hurting. We're grieving, and we just want justice," said Kyonna Jones-Carter, Dean's cousin.
Saturday was a solemn day for the Dean's loved ones. Many shed tears at Levett and Sons Funeral Home in Decatur as they said their final goodbyes. That included Dean's daughter, 14-year-old Aramani Ward.
“When I look in the mirror, I just cry because I look so much like him, and I see myself in him," Ward said.
Dean had just gone to a daddy-daughter dance with Ward.
“After my grandma passed, our bond really got closer, and I’m going to miss those moments," Ward said.
Dean's family describes him as caring with a great sense of humor.
“He was very funny, and he was just a kind person in general," Ward said. "He would always make someone laugh.”
“Even though he’s my cousin, I wouldn’t wish this on any other family. I wouldn’t wish this on anyone," Jones-Carter said. "His life was cut short because of two people’s decisions that they made, so it’s very important to me to get justice for him because James didn’t bother nobody. He was a good person. He had a great heart.”
Dean's family is still coming to terms with his sudden and violent death as they plead for anyone who knows what happened to come forward.
“Just why? You could have beat him up. You could have hit him with a gun. You could have done any of that, but you shot him down and killed him like a dog and robbed him," Jones-Carter said.
“The people that did it to him, I feel like he didn’t deserve it at all. I feel he should die peacefully instead of traumatizingly," Ward said.
Ward tries to focus on the good times with her dad as she mourns his loss.
“For right now, I’m going to just try and keep him in my memories, try to remember all the happy moments, and just always know that he’s watching me," Ward said.
Dean was supposed to take his daughter to the prom in May. That's just one of the many things she has to come to terms with never happening.
The shooting was captured on surveillance video at the MARTA bus stop at Candler and Glenwood Roads in Decatur at 12:30 a.m. on Friday, February 17. You can see the two suspects by clicking here.
Anyone with information is asked to call DeKalb County Police. You can remain anonymous.