“My boy can rest now,” mother speaks out after son’s killer is found guilty

PANAMA CITY, Fla. (WJHG/WECP) -Tyler Pate was only 30 when he was murdered.

Prosecutors say Matthew Peoples tried to claim that Pate had threatened to beat him up.. But they were able to prove Pate did not harm or threaten anyone, and did not have a weapon.

Pate’s mother, Melissa Everett, says these accusations did not sound like her son.

“Everybody was so shocked when all this happened, because that just was not Tyler,” said Everett, “Tyler does not just go and start trouble, he just doesn’t, that’s not him.”

Pate leaves behind two daughters and a son. His mother tells News Channel 7 that they were his world, which is why he was working on himself.

“He had just recently come home from rehab, where he changed a lot,” said Everett. “He went on his own because he wanted to change and be better for his kids, and that’s what he did.”

Everett also shares that her son loved music and even made his own.

“When I get in my moods, I just play his music so I can hear his voice,” she said. “ I miss my boy.”

On Wednesday, a jury took only 45 minutes to find Peoples guilty of Tyler Pate’s murder.

“My boy can rest now. He can rest now,” said Everett. “ I’m going to miss him, of course. I still cry, of course, but I feel better knowing that he didn’t get away with it.”

Although the verdict won’t bring Tyler Pate back, Everett says knowing justice was served brings her a little bit of closure.

Peoples’ sentencing is set for August 20th; his mother, along with friends, shares that they are hoping for maximum sentencing.

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