Chris Whitfield/The Daily CitizenTracy Caldwell looks down at the grave of Paul Edward Guerrant during a visit Tuesday at Whitfield Memorial Gardens. Guerrant was living at Caldwell's house on Dozier Street when he was beaten to death on the night of Dec. 22, 2014.

DALTON, Ga. — It has been more than two years since Tracy Caldwell lost someone she says was more like a brother to her than just a friend.

Paul Guerrant was walking back to Caldwell’s home on Dozier Street where he was staying on the cold, wet night of Dec. 22, 2014. He never made it, his body discovered on the pavement of Dozier Street with a pool of blood surrounding his head from blows to his head that led to his death.

Last week, a jury found Aaron Jerome Howell guilty of murder in the death of Guerrant. Howell is scheduled to be sentenced by Superior Court Judge Cindy Morris on June 13. But while the conviction of Howell brings some closure for those who knew Guerrant, and for the investigators and prosecutors tasked with bringing his killer to justice, Caldwell is still left with an emptiness to the unanswered question of “Why?”

“It puzzles me why Aaron did what he did,” Caldwell said. “I just want to know why he did what he did. I am glad they have found him guilty, but it doesn’t bring Paul back. Paul was an innocent being, and I just want to know why. Why did this have to happen? There had to have been a reason why.”

Investigators and prosecutors were never able to fully answer that question. There were no witnesses to the attack, and Howell never gave investigators much in the way of answers as they asked him “Why?” over and over throughout two sets of interviews. Howell several times repeated “There is nothing to speak of” when asked about Guerrant’s death.

Caldwell said when Howell was arrested in April of 2015 she knew police had found the man responsible for Guerrant’s death. But she said without knowing the motive and without knowing exactly what happened, the unanswered questions will always stay with her.

“When they captured Aaron, I knew from the start this has to be the guy,” said Caldwell, who now lives in Murray County and was a witness for the state at the trial. “But we never found out why, and that bothers me a lot. Paul would never hurt anyone ever.”

Caldwell said she and Guerrant reconnected about seven years ago at a Dalton High School reunion. The two kept in touch and when Guerrant was living in Dalton later, he would sleep on the floor of her home on Dozier Street.

“I didn’t have anything fancy to offer him and all we had was the floor, but he always said that was just fine,” she said Tuesday while visiting Guerrant’s grave at Whitfield Memorial Gardens. “He was just the sweetest man. I just don’t understand why anyone could have killed him.”

Prosecution witness Jimmy Williams Jr. said Howell confessed to “killing someone” because the victim was “talking smack.” During one of the recorded interviews with police that was played for the jury in the trial, Howell can be seen praying over pictures of Guerrant and says, “In my stuff, all in my stuff, playing with my stuff.” He also says, “You’re free now,” and at another point says, “Shouldn’t have done it.” Howell said he kept backpacks hidden underneath some brush near where Guerrant’s body was found, and one police theory involved Guerrant perhaps finding the backpacks and Howell becoming upset.

District Attorney Bert Poston admitted the state’s case was largely circumstantial with little in the way of forensic evidence, but he said in his closing statement that despite being offered many opportunities to profess his innocence, Howell couldn’t deny the murder of Guerrant.

“He offered no innocent explanation,” Poston said in his closing statement to the jury. “Never offers any explanation for that because the truth doesn’t suit him. He confessed to Paul, confessed to God and confessed to you.”

Ann Guerrant, Paul’s sister, said after the trial concluded she was grateful for the conviction and for those who worked on her brother’s behalf.

“I would like to really thank Mr. Poston and everyone in the Dalton Police Department and the victim witness office,” Ann Guerrant said. “I can’t tell you how professional they are and how hard they worked to pull all of this together. They really, truly did a wonderful job, and I thank all of them for working so hard for Paul.”

Public Defender Natalie Glaser, who along with Cat Pyne presented Howell’s defense, said they will be filing a motion for a new trial after Howell’s sentencing hearing.