Estranged Husband Accused In 2021 Tucson Triple Slaying: Police

TUCSON, AZ — An estranged husband was arrested last week, nearly a year after he is accused of killing his wife and her two children, according to Tucson police.

Willona White, 44, Jaiden White, 14, and Talmadge Holmes, Jr, 18, were found shot to death the morning of July 1, 2021 in a house in the 7600 block of East Toronto Street in Tucson, police said.

Willona White's estranged husband, John Edwards James, 46, was arrested June 15 on suspicion of three counts of first degree murder, according to police and court records.

He is being held on $1.25 million bond.

After interviews and forensic analysis of evidence from the scene, police said they got several search warrants that helped them find probable cause to arrest James in the killings.

James was released from Pima County Jail in November 2020, after being charged in December 2019 with several serious felonies, including aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, kidnapping and possession of a weapon by a prohibited person, according to court documents. All charges besides possession of a weapon by a dangerous person were dismissed Jan. 11, court documents say.

At the time of his arrest for the slayings, James was already in Pima County Jail for unrelated drug charges, according to police.