James Delano Shaw. El Reno, Oklahoma.
On May 21, 2007, at approximately 3:30 P.M., family discovered James deceased at his residence located on Willow Creek, El Reno, OK. The Medical Examiner's Office reported the death as a homicide caused by multiple stab wounds.
If you have any information about this homicide, please call the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation at 1-800-522-8017. You can remain anonymous.
Friends, family reflect on unsolved killing of El Reno man
BY TIFFANY GIBSON tgibson@opubco.com
July 3, 2011
EL RENO— The only way Joquita Shaw can hear her husband's voice is to listen to the vinyl albums of gospel music he recorded decades ago.
“He had a beautiful bass voice,” she said.
It's been more than four years since she found her husband, James Shaw, lying on the kitchen floor in their home, stabbed to death. The killing is still unsolved.
On May 21, 2007, Joquita Shaw went to a book club meeting after her husband left to cash a check and pick up some groceries from Walmart. He had undergone open heart surgery in September 2006 and was still recuperating, she said.
When she returned, the door was unlocked, and her husband was lying on the floor. At first she thought he had suffered a heart attack.
“I touched him, and he was cold,” she said. “I called 911 and said, ‘My husband's dead, and there's blood everywhere.'”
About 4 p.m., El Reno police went to the house at 500 Willow Creek Drive. They found James Shaw, 73, lying on his left side, according to a police report.
The state Medical Examiner's report said the body of James Shaw had multiple stab wounds to the head, chest, neck, back and cheek.
El Reno police found a silver box knife near the house, according to their report.
Officials don't think the assailant was someone the family knew. They think the killer was after money.
Joquita Shaw said her husband cashed a check for $150 at Walmart that day. Investigators obtained surveillance video from the store, and the Oklahoma State Bureau of Investigation is still pursuing leads.
James Shaw's youngest son, Justin, said not knowing who is responsible for his father's death has been devastating.
“I know finding him won't bring him back, but finding who did this gives you some control,” he said. “It's a tremendous roller coaster of feelings.”
‘Like he's still here'
Joquita and James Shaw met in Oklahoma City at a revival meeting.
They wrote letters to one another at first, because he was working in Denver. They married in 1959.
Joquita Shaw always felt safe in the house on Willow Creek Drive where she has lived for 32 years.
“It's really quiet, and we live across from a park and behind a church,” she said.
James Shaw, a retired professor at Redlands Community College, preached sermons at the church next door. His friend Don Kelley said he misses those talks.
“He was one of the founding members of the church,” Kelley said. “He was an outstanding teacher. He put his heart into everything he did.”
Kelley said he has continued the tradition of having lunch with the Shaws after church on Sundays, but it's not the same without his friend.
“We'd have a lot of potlucks, and we would go over and sing,” he said. “We had a lot of fun doing that.”
James Shaw learned to sing a cappella through church hymns, and he learned to read music from shape notes. He recorded two albums with The Keystone Quartet.
Joquita Shaw said she and her children listen to the records together.
“I can see him singing,” she said. “It doesn't make me sad. It's a good feeling; it's like he's still here.”
Leads being followed
OSBI Director Stan Florence remembers arriving at the scene and being surprised that such a brutal crime had happened in a well-kept part of town.
Multiple agents were at the scene, and latent prints were taken from the house, Florence said.
“We've had a healthy number of leads,” Florence said. “We feel confident that one of the suspects we've identified is responsible or has had some involvement.”
Joquita Shaw said she feels guilty about replacing the blood-soaked carpet shortly after the stabbing. She now wonders if more evidence could have been obtained.
“I didn't want my kids to see the carpet,” she said.
The family fears state budget cuts might have hampered the case.
Florence said the department has had cuts within the last year, leaving 33 positions vacant.
Not filling the open positions has saved the bureau more than $2 million, but Florence said it could impact caseloads.
“Budget cuts have not affected this case. We have authorized agents to travel out of state to pursue leads in this case,” Florence said. “We've always had a confidence this case would be solved, and that confidence remains today.”