3 killed by gunfire on Parkway
By Jenese Harris – Reporter/anchor, Chris Parenteau – Reporter, Ashley Harding – Reporter, Erik Avanier – Reporter
ACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Three people under the age of 20 were killed Tuesday night when someone pulled alongside a silver Chevrolet Cruze on Town Center Parkway just before 11 p.m. and opened fire. A fourth occupant was also shot, but survived.
The Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office identifies those killed as Trevon Bullard, 18, of Orange Park; Jercoby Groover, 19, also of Orange Park; and Royale D’Von Smith Jr., 18, of Jacksonville.
Friends identified the surviving victim as 20-year-old Kenyata Bullard, Trevon’s older brother. At last check, he remained hospitalized in serious condition. A family friend said Kenyata Bullard, who goes by the nickname Ace, is an aspiring rap artist who posts his videos on YouTube
The Sheriff’s Office said detectives have determined that the teenagers were targeted based on an ongoing dispute between two groups and the shooting was not a random act of violence.
Sheriff Mike Williams told News4Jax that two of the four men shot have ties to a known gang.
“Not a random act of violence, obviously,” Williams said. “It’s a tragedy, but one that could have been avoided.”
Based on social media posts, it appears the four victims were at nearby restaurant celebrating a friend’s birthday party. Williams said apparently the rival group followed them to the area.
Family members told News4Jax that Groover, whom friends called Coby, was a recent graduate of Lee High School. Groover played football at University Christian, then Lee, wearing No. 4.
“It made me sick to my stomach,” said David Penland, who was Groover’s Coach at University Christian. “I started texting all his former teammates and all the guys I knew were close with him.”
Penland said Groover was a standout running back and safety in high school who went on to play football at a college in Virginia. He said Groover was home for the summer break.
“He was a good kid. I didn’t have any issues with him. He was always smiling. All his teammates loved him,” Penland said. “He died too young.”
A former neighbor said he was an awesome, sweet kid.
“He was always outside with his friends talking … always very sweet, polite, well-mannered,” the neighbor told News4Jax.
Trevon Bullard, who went by the nickname Quan, also played football and graduated last week from Ridgeview High School in Clay County.
“I saw him at school all the time because all the my friends played football and he was on the football team,” former classmate Jeffrey Dead said.
Kshawn Price, who graduated with Trevon Bullard, said he learned about his death through social media.
“I went on my Instagram and it was all over my feed. It was crazy,” Kshawn Price said. “I was just shocked. When I heard about it, my heart dropped. I was, like, ‘Bro, I was just with him. I just saw him.'”
Jayden Price knew both Bullard brothers. He said he learned about the shooting from classmates when he went to school Wednesday morning.
“I wanted to know from his family members because I’m really close to them too,” Jayden Price said. “I didn’t want to find out from just a friend or friends at school, I wanted to find out from someone close.”
Clay County court documents show Kenyata Bullard was, at one time, under investigation as a suspect in an incident involving shots being fired. According to an arrest warrant, he was charged in connection to shots being fired during a suspected drug deal involving other co-defendants.
Jacksonville homicide detectives have not said what led to the violence, but investigators said at least one person in the second vehicle opened fire before driving off. Investigators were not sure if shots were exchanged between the two vehicles.
Homicide detectives said this does not appear to be a case of road rage.
There was no description of the vehicle that sped away or of who fired the shots. Police were looking through video recorded by surveillance cameras in the area, trying to learn more.
The two businesses closest to the shooting scene, Baptist Emergency Center and the Gate gas station, both told News4Jax that any surveillance video recorded of the incident would have been turned over to investigators. The Baptist ER said it was put on a brief lockdown after of the shooting, but resumed full operations quickly.
The University of North Florida sent out an emergency alert early Wednesday morning letting students and staff know it happened near the main entrance to campus, but police did not believe the shooting was connected to UNF.
“It is unusual for this location, however it could occur anywhere. We aren’t sure what the background is,” Lt. Craig Waldrup said.
Copyright 2018 by WJXT News4Jax – All rights reserved.