Patti May

Patti May, 74, of Jonesboro, departed this life on December 10, 2024, at the Flo and Phil Jones Hospice House.  Patti was born on December 11, 1949, in Tulsa, Oklahoma, to June May and the late T.L. May.  She was a devout Christian and member of the First Methodist Church in Jonesboro.

After graduating from Pocahontas High School in Pocahontas, Arkansas in 1968, she moved to southern California, where she resided for 50 years.  She worked in banking for a number of years, followed by a long career with the Los Angeles Police Department, where she attained the rank of detective, with the notorious Hillside Strangler case being one of the many cases she worked.  After retiring from the LAPD, she became a registered nurse and worked many years at various hospitals.  After retiring as a professional nurse, Patti volunteered her nursing services at area hospitals.  In 2022, Patti left California and became a resident of Jonesboro.

Patti is preceded in death by her father, T. L. May, and step-mother, Martha May.  She is survived by her mother, June Turner; brother, James May of Jonesboro; sister, Karen (Butch) McEntire, of Southaven, Mississippi; nephew, Jeremy McEntire of Tennessee and many friends.

A Celebration of Life Service will be 2:00 P.M., Thursday, December 12, 2024, at Emerson Memorial Chapel with Reverend John Miles officiating and Emerson Funeral Home in charge of arrangements.  Burial will follow at Oaklawn Cemetery with Don O’Neal, Tom Bishop, Doug Sweet, Paul Brown, Jeremy McEntire and Fred Hausein serving as pallbearers.  Visitation will be from 1:00 until service time at Emerson Memorial Chapel.

For lasting memorials, the family requests donations to the Flo and Phil Jones Hospice House, 1148 E. Matthews, Jonesboro, Arkansas 72401.  To sign an online guestbook, go to emersonfuneralhome.com.