Amtrak conductor and Local 1470 (Edmonston, Md.) member James E. Blue III, 43, was shot multiple times Jan. 25 outside a home he was in the process of remodeling while talking on a cellphone to his son, who is away at college. He was taken to an area hospital where he was pronounced dead shortly thereafter.
Although he is married to Baltimore City Police Lt. Keisha Blue, the shooting is not thought to be related to his wife’s position as a police officer, Baltimore media has reported. A Baltimore television station reported Feb. 2 that a teenage suspect was taken into police custody and has been charged with first-degree murder.
A member since 2002, Blue followed in his mom’s footsteps when he became an Amtrak conductor. Now retired, Mrs. Shelley Forbes-Eford was also a member of Local 1470.
Local 1470 brother Anthony Mobley and four others have set up a GoFundMe account on behalf of the family to help with funeral expenses.
“With all sincerity I’m torn in my heart. His life ended abruptly on January 25, 2022,” Mobley wrote on the page. “Many of you know his wonderful loving mother who retired from Amtrak…Therefore I’m asking for your financial support to help his wife and kids with funeral expenses and other financial obligations.”
Blue leaves behind his wife Keisha, three children – Jadan (23), Landan (14) and Peyton (9), and his mother, according to the online fundraiser.