LOUISVILLE, Ky. — Friends and neighbors of Jefferson County Sheriff's Deputy Brandon Shirley are hopeful for justice as one of the suspects in Shirley's murder appeared in court Tuesday.
Jesse Johnson, 28, pleaded not guilty during his arraignment. He was appointed a public defender and his bond was set at $500,000.
While it's been more than five months since 26-year-old Brandon Shirley was ambushed and killed while working an off-duty security job in Shively, even those who simply knew of him haven't forgotten. In fact, they've stayed tuned in to the recent developments, including when LMPD announced arrests made in the case last week.
Angela Clark-Milan lives just a block down from Rockford Auto Sales where Shirley was killed in Shively.
"I saw him every night because I would come home from work late at night," Clark-Milan said.
She said she was awake early on the morning of Aug. 5, 2021, and heard the gunshots. She said she's felt a sense of guilt about her lack of action that morning ever since.
"I just wish I had looked out," Clark-Milan said. "I could have been of great help. [The investigation] definitely wouldn't have taken as long if I had looked out the kitchen window."
The announcement of the arrests in the case gave her some consolation. She says she's relieved.
"I said, 'good.' I was so glad because I really thought it was going to be a cold case," she said. "If you do the crime, you should do the time."
Meanwhile, at Fairdale's Fire Department, Chief Darrell Roy and his team attended a candlelight vigil shortly after Shirley's death. He said when someone targets one first responder, they target all of them.
"We're not like everybody else because there are certain things we see and have to do," Chief Roy said. "We'll just have to see how that unfolds in the judicial system."
Roy says they have faith that Shirley's family will finally get the answers they've been waiting for, and that convictions will be made.
Johnson's next court date has been set for April 26.
The other suspect indicted alongside Johnson, 18-year-old Marquis Mitchell, remains at the Floyd County Jail awaiting extradition. Sheriff Frank Loop with the Floyd County Sheriff's Department said Jefferson County officials have 30 days to bring Mitchell to Louisville, but a date for that transition has not been set.
Contact reporter Isaiah Kim-Martinez at ikimmartin@whas11.com. You can follow him on Twitter (@isaiah_km) and Facebook.
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