'Justice for Jason!' 5 years after Homestead man's murder, family asks for tips

HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) -- From the very spot where Jason Jolley took his last breaths five years and one day ago, his family gathered, held hands, and prayed.

They chanted, "Justice for Jason! Justice for Jason!"

Half a decade after his murder, Jason's killer still hasn't been caught.

"Yes, Jason deserves justice!" Bishop Elehue Livingston III shouted as a crowd of thirty people stood in the parking lot next to the red car wash on Homestead Road where Jason was shot. "A brother, a nephew, an uncle, a friend to the community was assassinated on these grounds, and even though he's missing, we think that his legacy lives on!"

One man passed around orange rubber wristbands that read "Justice for Jason" in white writing. Shenetha Toliver handed out blue and orange helium balloons to each person attending. They prayed together.

Shenetha raised a megaphone shouting "Justice for Jason!" as the crowd let go of balloons in unison.

"It lifted my heart up just to see these balloons go up in honor of Jason," said Kendra Jolley Larkin, Jason's older sister.

Kendra thought by now, her brother's murder would be behind her. But, five years after the 41-year-old was shot to death, the wound is still open. She joined hands with other family members as they prayed for tips to come in, so homicide detectives can reopen Jason's cold case.

"Sometimes there are people who know things, but they're just afraid," Kendra said.

On July 30, 2017, Jason was talking on his cell phone in front of the car wash when police said a stray bullet from a shootout across the street hit him.

At the time, investigators didn't have many details about the shooter or vehicles on the scene other than to say the person drove off south on Homestead. There were dozens of rounds fired.

But this night, five years later, Jason's family doesn't want to talk about that. Instead, they choose to remember Jason's smile, his love for the Astros and Texans, and how he spent his free time giving back in this neighborhood.

You'd often find Jason volunteering to bag groceries at the Big City Food store or driving elderly neighbors to a doctor's appointment. That's the kind of guy Jason was.

"We want him to be remembered as that jolly guy," Shenetha said. "I don't want him to be forgotten."

If you have any information about who killed Jason, call HPD homicide at 713 308-3600.

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