Jeremiah Shawn Duffey funeral rejected by his children, ex-wife says
Stephanie Ramsay told TMZ Duffey's children chose cremation and no service after his alleged murder-suicide with Sara Gilson.
By Bianca Rossi · Entertainment Editor
2 min read
The Jeremiah Shawn Duffey funeral will not happen, his ex-wife Stephanie Ramsay told TMZ, saying his children were the people responsible for the decision after his death and chose not to hold a service.
Ramsay told TMZ that, under Oklahoma law, Duffey's children were treated as his next of kin after he died. She said they decided against a funeral because of what she described as his actions, including child sexual abuse allegations previously reported by TMZ.
Duffey, also known as Shawn, is accused of fatally shooting Sara Gilson before dying by suicide. Investigators have said the two were found dead with apparent gunshot wounds to the head and that the deaths appeared to be a murder-suicide.
Why is there no Jeremiah Shawn Duffey funeral?
According to Ramsay, Duffey's children chose cremation instead of a funeral. She told TMZ his ashes will be put in a family plot at a funeral home.
Ramsay also told TMZ she wanted to correct public reporting about her relationship with Duffey. She said she was 17 when they married after they began dating when she was 15 and he was 20.
Ramsay said their small-town setting made the relationship seem unremarkable to her at the time. She told TMZ she now sees that history differently in light of the allegations against Duffey.
Ramsay also alleged to TMZ that Duffey repeatedly threatened suicide during their marriage. She claimed he often warned that he would take her with him, and said she believed his thinking was that if he could not be with her, no one else could.
What happened to Sara Gilson?
TMZ reported that officers found Gilson and Duffey dead from apparent head wounds. Investigators said the case appeared to be a murder-suicide.
Less than two weeks before her death, Gilson posted a TikTok in which she accused her soon-to-be ex-husband of being a pedophile, according to TMZ. The allegation had not been resolved in court before the deaths.
TMZ also reported that Gilson had obtained a protective order against Duffey after an earlier incident. Police said no violations of that order had been reported before the deaths.
Ramsay told TMZ she now has sole custody of the five children she shared with Duffey, whose ages range from 15 to 25. Lyle Landers, Gilson's ex-husband, told TMZ he has sole custody of the two children he shared with Gilson, ages 13 and 14.
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This story draws on original reporting from TMZ.