JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Police said Saturday afternoon they had recovered the vehicle belonging to a teacher who was found Thursday beaten to death outside her Panama Park home.
Deborah Liles, 62, was found dead of multiple injuries in the carport of her home on East 59th Street and her car was missing. They still have not located whoever is responsible for her death.
The gold 2010 Buick Lacrosse was found on Notter Avenue, just off Golfair Boulevard. The Jacksonville Sheriff's Office is asking that anyone who saw someone in or near the vehicle to call 904-630-0500.
Members of Liles' family said they hope this brings police closer to figuring out who took the life of the beloved mother, grandmother and longtime elementary school music teacher.
Liles’ four children are dealing with the loss of their mother in different ways. None of them know what happened to her and they want answers.
“What are we going to tell the (grand)children?” Liles’ daughter Dana Standridge said. “It's already terrible, but I feel like if we could at least come to a place where they are found, and I can say, ‘but the bad guys do get caught.”’
Years ago, Liles' children remember an incident where their mother overcame a violent attack. Her attacker is still behind bars. Thursday, she was attacked again and didn't make it.
"The pain; it's a thousand times worse," Standridge said.
The family members said they are very passionate about change in Jacksonville relating to the murder rate. They all believe people should look at the loss of life more seriously.
“The world just got a lot scarier -- a lot scarier,” Standridge said. “I don't know how I'm going to sleep at night anymore, and I'm an adult. For my children, who are home with their sweet dad, they're grieving. How am I going to tell them some stranger came in here and beat her to death?”
Family members said they spoke with Liles on Thursday morning and she was going to take a package to the post office for her granddaughter. That package is still there inside the home, indicating that she never made it to the post office.
“Nobody is safe. We've all got to work together and not just assume that happened because of where they lived or something that they did,” Standridge said. “It was senseless, and it could happen to anyone.”
There will be grief counselors at San Jose Elementary School, where Liles taught, on Monday to speak with those in need.