TAMPA, Fla. — Marissa Berry said she keeps replaying the morning of Jan. 31 in her head.
She got a call but didn't answer. When it rang again, she said she knew something was wrong with her son Edward Edwards III.
"He was my baby. The best for me," she said.
Her son, who just turned 27, went by Ivy, was shot and killed while riding his bicycle, she said.
Earlier this week, Tampa police announced three men in connection to a man killed that day. Officers responded to the area of East 24th Street and Ybor Street for the report of gunshots detected.
Officers said they arrested Cornelious Mack Jr. and charged him with first-degree murder; Waltonio S. McFadden is charged with principal in first-degree murder and Santonio M. Simmons with tampering with physical evidence related to a felony.
"I just don't understand why would y'all want to wake up in the morning to decide to go and kill somebody?" Marissa Berry said.
Police haven't shared a motive for the shooting.
The family said they are choosing to forgive the three men for their own sanity, but their family remains torn apart.
"I want them to get the death penalty," said Cynthia Berry, Ivy's grandmother. "I forgive you, but you still need to go."
The family said Edwards leaves behind a 9-year-old son and a daughter who is just about to turn eight.
Edward's grandmother said he was the "protector" of the family. Whenever someone needed something, he looked after them. He was known for being the life of the party with his sense of humor and giving personality.
While the family awaits the process in court, they said they hope the three men serve time and hope it will lead to the death penalty.
TPD said they were able to make the arrests through evidence from witnesses, along with vehicle GPS data, cellular location data, and video surveillance.
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