MAPLE HEIGHTS, Ohio — Faith is surely what has kept Cynthia Ivey these past seven days.
“You know, I put my trust and faith in God, and I know that God has my back, and that's the only thing that, you know, I can really say is helping me right now,” said Ivey.
One week ago, police said Ivey’s son Jason Iverson shot and killed Mercedes Iverson and Norbert Carter during a Labor Day church picnic at Stafford Park in Maple Heights.
The victims who were married were Jason’s older sister and brother-in-law.
Ivey said the couple was about to celebrate their one-year anniversary in October and they were expecting a baby girl named Ava.
“You know, she [Mercedes] had a lot of friends,” said Ivey. “The family loved her, she was very outgoing and she did a lot.”
Ivey said Jason and Mercedes had been feuding for a while. They all ended up at the picnic at the same time when Jason tried to fight the couple, and that eventually led to Jason shooting the couple. A 13-year-old boy was also grazed by a bullet.
“Siblings have squabbles, you know, they have disagreements, you know, nothing would have ever made me think that it would have gone that far if your son had never gotten violent like this in the past,” said Ivey.
Maple Heights Mayor and Safety Director Annette Blackwell was at the picnic during the shooting as well. “After we caught our breath, we began to pray. They asked me to join them in circle, we just began to pray because you can just imagine the shock,” said Blackwell.
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