JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – A man who police said was involved in a shootout, during which a 3-year-old boy was killed and his mother was wounded, has been charged with murder, according to the Jacksonville Sheriff's Office.
Connor Mickens died at an area hospital two days after he was shot in the head on Oct. 19, according to his family. His mother was also injured when she was shot in the leg inside a Northwest Jacksonville home, the Sheriff's Office said.
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Police identified the shooter as Brian Littles, an ex-boyfriend of Connor's mother. On Oct. 20, Littles turned himself in to police and was initially arrested on a gun charge stemming from a juvenile warrant from 2010.
After conferring with the assistant state attorney, charges of murder and armed burglary were added Thursday, the Sheriff's Office announced.
Police said four people, two of them children, were in the home on Broadway Avenue at Carrie Street about 10 p.m. Oct. 19 when Littles came in through an unlocked window.
Investigators said he was armed with a revolver that he bought with the intention of shooting his ex-girlfriend's new boyfriend.
As Littles came through the window, he crossed the living room, where he was observed by a 5-year-old child, police said.
According to police, Littles then came to the doorway leading into a bedroom and began firing in the direction of the bed. A man, Connor and Connor's mother were inside the bedroom at the time.
That's when the man in the bedroom armed himself with a pistol, began returning fire at Littles and, during the exchange, Connor was shot in the head and Connor’s mother was shot in the leg, according to the Sheriff's Office.
Littles is being held on $775,000 bond.
He was the featured fugitive on News4Jax's Wheel of Justice in May. At the time, he was wanted on $25,000 bond.
Anyone who is a victim of domestic violence can call the Hubbard House 24-hour hotline at 904-354-3114.