Slain Mom Of 2 Mourned: 'If We Could Just Have Her Back'

ST. PETERSBURG, FL — Even though the family of K'Mia Simmons welcomed the arrest of a man accused of killing her, sadness prevailed on their front lawn in South St. Pete as they spoke to reporters about their loss and grief.

"I can't really tell you how I'm doing," Linda Simmons said eight days after her youngest daughter was killed. "Because I don't know how I'm doing. You know I'm trying to wrap my head around all of this...We don't know why this happened, but we know something great is going to happen...if it wasn't for my grandchildren..."

A heavy stream of tears rolled down Simmons' face and prevented her from finishing her thought as her 28-year-old granddaughter, Keilesha Frasier, comforted her and placed her arms around the older woman.

Tyron Jackasal, 20, was arrested on a second-degree murder charge Wednesday, St. Pete Police said. Investigators said he shot and killed 21-year-old K'Mia Simmons March 30 as she sat in the passenger seat of the Volvo the father of her two children had driven.

The shooting in the 1800 block of 22nd Street South resulted from some sort of "beef" Jackasal had with Parise Lovett Jr., the father of K'Mia Simmons' children, according to officers. Authorities said they believe Lovett was the intended target of the gunfire. Lovett is not a suspect in the shooting, but a victim, police said.

LaShawn Lester, K'Mia's oldest sister, said although they were happy to see an arrest made in the case, the healing journey for their big, close family is not going to be easy. It will be difficult to attend the eventual trial and sit in the same courtroom with the suspect, and relive their most difficult moments.

"If we could just have her back," Lester said as she cried.

The family shared their gratitude for the many people and officers who helped work for an arrest in the case.

Deep sobs and cries came from family members and friends sitting on the porch during the news conference. Frasier was the backbone of the family as she also gave extended hugs to those who needed them.

According to the family, the one-year-old daughter of K'Mia had a hard time eating in the first days after losing her mom.

Her two-year-old daughter is having a more difficult time because she understands her mom is not around. The family doesn't know how to tell her that her mom isn't coming back, Lester said.

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