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It was anything but a glorious morning on Morning Glory Street in the Martins area. 36 year Ernie Miranda was killed before dawn and his body left sprawled in a ditch. 

Now Miranda has had  many run-ins with the law and according to his brother, he was just released from prison two months ago. So is it a case where Miranda's bad deeds caught up with him? His brother says that may have been the case. I found out more.

Voice of Cecil Miranda - Stepfather
"I just get it this morning that they find him dead in a drain."
 
It is the worst news a parent can wake up to. Ernie Miranda's body was found thrown in the gutter on Morning Glory Street. According to residents, the garbage men alerted them of his body around 6:00 this morning. Miranda's brother says he doesn't know what happened after he went to sleep.
 
Courtney Weatherburne
"So you guys were just here hanging out, drinking?"

Voice of Brother
"Yes, we were hanging out, drinking green thing. On the mahogany we were hanging out."

Courtney Weatherburne
"So like around what time you guys came back home and hang out?"

Voice of Brother
"We come home from Mahogany like after 9:00."

Courtney Weatherburne
"And then you guys came to hang out more and what time you guys went to sleep?"

Voice of Brother
"Well, I went in after 10:00, my girlfriend sit down outside a little while, then after 11:00 she say she went upstairs since I was upstairs so he said he was going inside, then when we were inside we were asleep."

But as they slept, Miranda left the house and someone stabbed him to death. Neighbors say they didn't see what happened, they just heard some commotion around 1:00 this morning. It is until later this morning that the police came to look for his brother to identify Miranda.

Voice of Brother
"One of his foot was up, his eye was open, looking up to the sky with a stab wound in the right side of the ribs a big stab wound."

Courtney Weatherburne
"So last night you didn't hear when he left, you no even know what is going on?"

Voice of Brother
"I no hear nothing, I don't know nothing."

Although the news came as a shock, there was a foreshadowing.

Voice of Brother
"He felt his death was coming, because every day the man say people are trailing him, the man say he feel it, the man took me to a lot of people he did wrong to in life and apologized to them, the man looked at me and said I feel like I am going to die. I will not swear for Ernie like what everyone does, my little boy wasn't a saint, my little boy was ignorant back then. He didn't take disrespect, he never took threats but now from the man came out of jail that wasn't the same Ernie, he was changing his life. This man takes all kinds of liking, all kinds of threats, all type of thing from people that he never does take. He was changing his life but like how they say it is when you change your life is when everything turn back and come back at you."

Courtney Weatherburne
"You guys were very close right as brothers, tell us about that relationship and bond you guys had?"

Voice of Brother
"Well, that relationship hard to explain, when you see he, you see me and my other brother over there, it is only three of us."

Now that circle of brotherly love is broken forever. The family and friends hope that the surveillance cameras at Sadie Vernon School could help in Miranda's murder investigation.

In 2009, Police shot Miranda Â - when he was wanted for a robbery.  And then in 2010, he was charged for the Chon Saan robbery attempt.  

But despite all that, he was a father and Miranda leaves behind 3 young children.