Arrest Made in 40-Year-Old North Miami Beach Murder Case

Nearly forty years after the brutal murder of real estate agent Shirley Brant, North Miami Beach Police have finally arrested the man responsible for the shocking crime. Jeffrey Taylor, now 64 and a resident of Liberty City, was taken into custody and charged with second-degree murder for the 1986 shooting of Brant in her office during a robbery attempt.

Back in 1986, Taylor was 26 years old. According to police reports, he was one of two men who entered the Brant Realty Corporation office on June 13, located on the second floor at 16375 NE 18th Avenue. Inside, Shirley Brant, then 49, was on a phone call when the assailants stormed in. Witnesses and records from the time indicate that Taylor demanded Brant hang up the phone. She resisted, shouting, "Don't shoot," as documented by the Miami Herald. Despite her pleas, Taylor shot her point-blank in the face.

Brant was rushed to the now-closed Parkway Regional Hospital but succumbed to her injuries hours later. At the crime scene, fingerprints were collected, particularly from a phone Taylor had ripped from the receiver and left under the desk. However, these prints were never entered into the AFIS automated identification system due to technical limitations of the time, leaving the case unsolved for 38 years.

In January 2023, a team of retired detectives returned to the North Miami Beach Police Department to re-examine cold cases, including Brant's. Advances in fingerprint technology allowed investigators to revisit the old evidence, and on March 21, 2025, a match was made, identifying the prints as belonging to Jeffrey Taylor.

Taylor is currently held without bail at the Turner Guilford Knight Correctional Center, facing formal charges of second-degree murder with a firearm. The announcement of his arrest brought mixed emotions of relief and sorrow to Shirley Brant's family, who never stopped seeking justice and honoring her memory.

During a press conference outside the North Miami Beach Police Department, her son, Ben Brant, addressed the media, reflecting on his mother's legacy: "She was ahead of her time... shattered the glass ceiling and donated her money to philanthropy," he shared emotionally.

Shirley Brant was not only a successful businesswoman but also a devoted mother, exemplary wife, and active community member. Her death left a profound impact, evidenced by the over 600 attendees at her funeral.

Her husband, Lawrence Brant, a dentist, turned his grief into activism following the crime. In 1986, he established the Shirley Brant Memorial Fund against firearm violence, aiming to raise awareness about the societal impact of gun violence. In a Miami Herald interview that year, he poignantly stated, "Guns don't kill people; people with guns kill people," challenging the NRA's slogan.

Lawrence also emphasized the importance of voting in shaping gun control policies: "People have been calling and asking, 'What can I do?' What they can do is vote for elected officials who want to do something about gun control," he insisted. Sadly, Lawrence passed away in 2016 without seeing the case resolved, yet his legacy of advocacy continues.

North Miami Beach Police Chief Juan Pinillos underscored the significance of the arrest: "This arrest is a testament to the power of collaboration, determination, and never giving up," he stated.

While the Brant family is relieved by the arrest, they acknowledge that the pain of their loss endures. However, they believe this breakthrough provides closure they had awaited for nearly four decades.