The stepdaughter and sister of two victims killed in a triple stabbing on Jacksonville’s Westside is remembering her loved ones while searching for answers after the brutal attack.
30-year-old Austin Fisher is in the Duval County jail facing three second-degree murder charges in connection to the deaths of 49-year-old Edwin Barber, 27-year-old Savannah Barber and 37-year-old Shad Cole.
According to the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office, officers responded around 3 a.m. Thursday to a call about a man knocking on a resident’s front door in a neighborhood on Exodus Way.
When officers arrived, they said they found Edwin Barber suffering from a stab wound to the chest on a neighbor’s porch. Investigators said he had been attacked at his home down the street and ran for help.
Police then went to Barber’s home, where they found Savannah Barber dead inside a bedroom with multiple stab wounds. While canvassing the neighborhood, officers found Shad Cole dead outside another home, also suffering from multiple stab wounds.
Savannah and Cole died at the scene. Edwin later died at a hospital, according to JSO.
Investigators said tips from the community helped identify Fisher as a suspect. Police later found him at a motel in the Normandy Village area, where officers say he barricaded himself inside during a standoff before eventually being taken into custody.
Now, family members are trying to make sense of the loss.
Khristen Norman, Edwin Barber’s stepdaughter and Savannah Barber’s older sister, said she learned about the killings through a phone call from another sibling.
“I’m numb right now because I just can’t believe it,” Norman said. “I mean, I’m gonna miss her. I’m not gonna be able to talk to her or hear her.”
Norman spoke with First Coast News from her home in Baxley, Georgia, where she reflected on the bond she shared with both her stepfather and younger sister.
She described Savannah as outspoken and magnetic, someone who naturally drew people in.
“She wanted everybody to see her like she was just that person, and everybody wanted to be around her,” Norman said.
Savannah had also been working to build her own cleaning company.
When speaking about Edwin, Norman remembered his personality fondly.
“He was loud. He was funny,” she said.
Norman said Edwin and Savannah shared a close relationship.
She also remembered Shad Cole, the boyfriend of Savannah.
“Shad was quiet, but he always made sure Savannah was taken care of,” Norman said.
Norman said Fisher had been a longtime friend of the family and had been living in a shed behind the home for about three years.
She said Savannah often made sure he had food and looked after him.
“When Savannah cooked dinner, she would make sure he ate,” Norman said.
Now, Norman said she is left grappling with questions she cannot answer.
“How do you go in there and take somebody’s life while they’re sleeping?” Norman said. “Imagine waking up.”
“What made you do it?” she added. “Why?”
Fisher remains in jail and will await his first court appearance.
A GoFundMe campaign has been set up to help cover funeral expenses for Savannah and Edwin.