JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – An 18-year-old man shot outside a home in the Sweetwater neighborhood on the city's Westside about 1:30 a.m. Tuesday, died hours later at UF Health Jacksonville, the Jacksonville Sheriff's Office said.
Police have not identified the victim, but family members said it was Dewan Glover, who friends called Pedro. They said he lived on Luke Street, where he was shot.
Police received several 911 calls about gunfire in the neighborhood just off Firestone Road. The call was upgraded to a person shot as officers were en route. Arriving officers found the teenager in a next-door driveway suffering from a gunshot wound to the head.
Homicide Sgt. Steve Rudlaff said over a dozen shots were fired. Police were on scene for nearly 12 hours, canvassing the neighborhood for video or information from witnesses, before clearing the area.
Homicide Sgt. Steve Rudlaff said over a dozen shots were fired. Police canvassed the area for video or information from witnesses. As of Tuesday morning, there was no suspect information.
Glover’s family told News4Jax that whoever is responsible for killing him has no regard for human life and that is incredibly sad. They are hoping that police can provide answers about who killed him and why.
Many neighbors, including a mother who lives in the area, said they heard the gunshots in the middle of the night.
"It’s kind of unsettling," Allison Gooch said. "This is typically a quiet neighborhood, but we’ve had some incidents recently, and it’s just making us reconsider this part of town.”
Other neighbors also said they’ve noticed more issues in recent months. Jacksonville Sheriff's Office's crime mapping tool shows there have been 43 larcenies, 29 assaults, four burglaries and four robberies within a half-mile of Tuesday's shooting since the first of the year.
One neighbor said she is so concerned about recent incidents that she plans to call the sheriff and her city councilwoman to try to get patrols increased in the area.
The Sheriff's Office continues to investigate. Anyone with information is asked to call the Sheriff's Office at 904-630-0500 or email JSOCrimeTips@jaxsheriff.org. To remain anonymous, contact Crime Stoppers at 1-866-845-TIPS (8477).