JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – August saw three men shot and killed by Jacksonville police officers in a variety of scenarios. They were among 11 homicides in August, far outpacing the total of five from the same month last year.
To date in 2017, News4Jax has recorded 92 homicides. This time last year, there had been 75 homicides in Jacksonville.
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There were 27 homicides reported in the first two months of the year, another 18 in March and April, 13 in May, and 23 in June and July.
JACKSONVILLE HOMICIDES: January | February | March, April | May | June | July
Below, we have listed the names and ages of the August homicide victims and the information surrounding their deaths. We have also included a photo of each victim, where available.
Many of the cases remain unsolved. If you have information about any of these crimes, call the Jacksonville Sheriff's Office at 904-630-0500 or CrimeStoppers at 1-866-845-TIPS.
Tuesday, Aug. 1
Ra'Kwon Backey, 19
Backey was shot and killed in the driveway of his Westside home on Shelby Creek Road South. Police had no information about a suspect. His family said he had no enemies, a lot of friends, and they don't know of any recent arguments he had with anyone.
Saturday, Aug. 5
Savannah Gold, 21
Gold, whose family had reported her missing under suspicious circumstances, disappeared Aug. 2, and her body was found Aug. 5 in a lake off Club Duclay Drive. Police said Gold was killed by co-worker Lee Rodarte in his car in the parking lot of the Bonefish Grill in Mandarin. He admitted to killing her and disposing of her body, telling police where she could be found. Police said the two had a casual romantic relationship. An autopsy could not determine Gold's exact cause of death but called it a "violent homicide" and showed she had second- and third-degree burns over much of her body.
Saturday, Aug. 5
Anthony Myers, 29
Myers was shot and killed in the city's Mid-Westside neighborhood on West 17th Street and Moncrief Road. Police had no information about a possible shooter.
Thursday, Aug. 10
Bonnie Hollis, 43
Hollis died from stab wounds suffered June 25 in the courtyard of the Liberty Center apartments on North Washington Street. Theresa Thomas, 53, pleaded guilty to second-degree murder in the stabbing and was sentenced to 30 years in prison.
Monday, Aug. 14
Robert Bracewell, 20
Armed carjacking and kidnapping suspect Robert Bracewell was shot and killed by two Jacksonville police officers at Lane and San Juan avenues on the city's Westside. Police said Bracewell turned toward officers with a loaded gun but did not fire it before he was shot. Bracewell was a two-time convicted felon and had kidnapped a teenage girl at gunpoint from an apartment complex when he stole the car she was sitting in.
Wednesday, Aug. 16
Shafonda Boynton, 34
Boynton died at the hospital three hours after she was intentionally hit by a car in the yard of her Friden Drive home in Northwest Jacksonville, police said. Another woman was also injured by the car, which also hit the home. The man driving the car, John Perry, was arrested and charged with murder, attempted murder and armed burglary. Police said Perry was Boynton's boyfriend.
Friday, Aug. 18
Marvin Hartley, 27
Hartley was killed and another man was badly injured in a double shooting that stemmed from a dispute on King Street at Fleming Street -- just north of Interstate 10 in the Mixon Town area, the Jacksonville Sheriff's Office said. Police later said the case was being worked as a justifiable homicide and was "exceptionally cleared," meaning no arrest will be made.
Friday, Aug. 18
Derrick Brabham, 25
Brabham was fatally shot by police officers after he shot two officers with a semi-automatic rifle as they raided a Seaboard Avenue home to rescue three women and a toddler from danger. Brabham died at Orange Park Medical Center. Just before the shooting, he had threatened to kill himself and his family. One officer was shot in both hands and the other was shot in the stomach. Both survived.
Monday, Aug. 21
Maurice Amos Jr., 20
Amos was shot five times in his head, arms and body on Fernandina Avenue and later died at UF Health. Witnesses said that Amos was inside the home when he received a telephone call and stepped outside, where he was approached by an unknown vehicle and briefly spoke to the occupant(s) before an unknown person inside the vehicle shot him multiple times. The vehicle then drove off. Officers did not have a description of the car or the shooter.
Friday, Aug. 25
Daniel Blyler, 44
Blyler was shot and killed by Jacksonville police Officer Lemmuel Johnson in front of a sandwich shop on Edgewood Avenue North. Johnson approached Blyler, who was reported by witnesses to be intoxicated and armed, police said. When Blyler reached for his gun, Johnson fired 13 times, police said.
Thursday, Aug. 31
Christopher Bing, 25
Bing was killed and another man was injured in a shooting outside the Kings Ridge apartment complex on West 12th Street, not far from Kings Road, in Northwest Jacksonville. Both victims were taken to the hospital, where Bing died. Police had no description of a suspect.