Family On Both Sides Of Murder Speak

Friends and family of 41-year-old Karen Tillman were too broken up to talk to cameras -- but they did share a picture of her with us. They said the loving mother of four boys was coming home from her job at the Chevron Plant in Pascagoula Thursday night when she was murdered. Family members say Tillman was a wonderful person who was involved in local beauty pageants as a young woman. As an adult, she focused all her energy on raising her boys and going to their sporting events. Karen's boys call her the best mother in the world. 19-year-old Spanley Harris is charged with capital murder in the case. He was denied bond Friday. His older brother Travis defended Spanley saying he's not a bad person.

“He can be a sweet person sometimes but I can't believe he did it, I can't believe he did it,” says Travis Harris. Spanley Harris was awaiting sentencing as a youthful offender in another case--he was originally charged with rape and assault. His brother says Spanley wasn't the same after his first run in with the law.

“He have a temper, a bad temper, his mood swings, it just switched, he'd be cool today and he'd just and the next five minutes he just acting the fool, cussing people out and stuff,” says Travis. The Sheriff’s office is continuing its investigation. Officials declined to comment on whether or not the victim knew Spanley. The Tillman family says they did not know each other.