A man shot dead on a New Orleans street early Sunday has been identified as a father of three and a Jefferson Parish sheriff’s deputy who was assigned to the Jefferson Parish Correctional Center in Gretna, according to officials and relatives.
New Orleans Police Department officers found Ashley “Ash” Aples, 43, lying in 5600 block of Morrison Road. Officers responded after receiving a report of a shooting at 2:40 a.m.
No other details were available Tuesday, including a suspected motive for the killing.
Aples had worked as a prison officer for the Jefferson Parish Sheriff’s Office for over two years, according to Capt. Jason Rivarde, aSheriff’s Office spokesperson. He was not on duty at the time of his death.
“I’m just heartbroken,” Aples’ mother, Valerie Eddington (76), said Tuesday. “I lost my husband 13 years ago, and I thought that would be the hardest thing I would have to do until I lost my child.”
Aples was the youngest of Eddington’s three children. Born and raised in New Orleans East, he was an energetic child who was gregarious and athletic, she said.
He developed a love of music after receiving a keyboard as a gift, according to Eddington. Aples, who attended Sarah T. Reed High School in New Orleans, was a member of the band’s percussion section and played the cymbals.
Hurricane Katrina uprooted Aples in 2005, and he relocated to Houston, Texas, Eddington added. He had three children: sons Zion and Zakai, and a daughter named Za’rhya.
But Aples’ world was devastated in 2017, when Za’rhya died from a rare and aggressive malignancy, according to Eddington.
“His little girl died in his arms,” Eddington . said
She recalled a car ride in which Za’rhya became distraught in the back seat, crying and grabbing for Aples. He instantly pulled over to the side of the road, climbed into the back seat, and began speaking with her. It was basically toddler gibberish to Eddington.
“He understood her. “Her big bow on her head had fallen off and became lodged in the seat,” she explained. “He reached down and placed it back on her head, and she stopped crying. It was very touching to watch how patient he was with her.”
According to Eddington, Aples was also quite close to his boys. According to his mother, his fun-loving demeanor earned him the title of favorite uncle among the rest of the extended family.
“That’s exactly what his nieces and nephews would say. “I call him the ‘children whisperer,'” Eddington explained. “My grandkids and great-grandchildren are distraught. They’re absolutely heartbroken.
Aples credited his oldest kid as his inspiration when he represented the Sheriff’s Office in the Battle of the Badges, a charity amateur boxing match between local law enforcement and firemen.
“He won,” said Eddington, who had been concerned about being paired with a 20-something opponent.
Aples had a large family dispersed around the country, and they are anticipated to travel to the New Orleans region next week for his burial rites.
“This is just unbelievable that something like this would happen,” Eddington was saying. “He was such a nice guy. He was always assisting someone.”
Ashley Aples’ funeral will be conducted July 5 at New Orleans Funeral and Cremation Service, 9200 Interstate 10 Service Road, New Orleans. The viewing will take place at 10 a.m. Funeral services begin at 11 a.m.