On November 23, 2012, Jordan Davis, a
black
Black is a color which results from the absence or complete absorption of visible light. It is an achromatic color, without hue, like white and grey. It is often used symbolically or figuratively to represent darkness. Black and white have o ...
17-year-old
high school
A secondary school describes an institution that provides secondary education and also usually includes the building where this takes place. Some secondary schools provide both '' lower secondary education'' (ages 11 to 14) and ''upper seconda ...
student, was murdered at a Gate Petroleum
gas station
A filling station, also known as a gas station () or petrol station (), is a facility that sells fuel and engine lubricants for motor vehicles. The most common fuels sold in the 2010s were gasoline (or petrol) and diesel fuel.
Gasoline ...
in
Jacksonville, Florida
Jacksonville is a city located on the Atlantic coast of northeast Florida, the most populous city proper in the state and is the largest city by area in the contiguous United States as of 2020. It is the seat of Duval County, with which the ...
, by Michael David Dunn, a white 45-year-old software developer, following an argument over
loud music
Loud music is music that is played at a high volume, often to the point where it disturbs others and causes hearing damage. It may include music that is sung live, played with musical instruments, or with electronic media, such as Radio broadcast ...
played by Davis and his three friends, in what was believed to be a racially motivated shooting.
Dunn was convicted on three counts of
attempted second-degree murder for firing at three other teenagers who were with Davis and one count of firing into an occupied vehicle. The jury could not reach a verdict about whether to convict Dunn for the murder of Davis at the first trial. In a second trial, Dunn was found
guilty
Guilty or The Guilty may refer to:
* Guilt (emotion), an experience that occurs when a person believes they have violated a moral standard
Law
*Culpability, the degree to which an agent can be held responsible for action or inaction
*Guilt (law) ...
of the first-degree murder of Davis and sentenced to
life imprisonment
Life imprisonment is any sentence of imprisonment for a crime under which convicted people are to remain in prison for the rest of their natural lives or indefinitely until pardoned, paroled, or otherwise commuted to a fixed term. Crimes for ...
without the possibility of
parole
Parole (also known as provisional release or supervised release) is a form of early release of a prison inmate where the prisoner agrees to abide by certain behavioral conditions, including checking-in with their designated parole officers, or ...
plus 105 years in prison, which is two ''
de facto
''De facto'' ( ; , "in fact") describes practices that exist in reality, whether or not they are officially recognized by laws or other formal norms. It is commonly used to refer to what happens in practice, in contrast with ''de jure'' ("by la ...
'' consecutive life sentences.
In 2021, the jury and judges on the
Florida Supreme Court
The Supreme Court of Florida is the highest court in the U.S. state of Florida. It consists of seven members: the chief justice and six justices. Six members are chosen from six districts around the state to foster geographic diversity, and one ...
rejected Dunn's appeal based on the
stand-your-ground law
A stand-your-ground law (sometimes called "line in the sand" or "no duty to retreat" law) provides that people may use deadly force when they reasonably believe it to be necessary to defend against certain violent crimes (right of self-defense) ...
in Florida.
Background
Dunn and his fiancée Rhonda Rouer traveled from their home in
Brevard County
Brevard County ( ) is a county located in the east central portion of the U.S. state of Florida. As of the 2020 census, the population was 606,612, making it the 10th-most populated county in Florida. The official county seat is located in T ...
to attend Dunn's son's wedding in
Orange Park, near Jacksonville, Florida. Dunn and Rouer left the wedding early in order to return to their hotel and take care of their six-month-old puppy. On the way back to their hotel, the two decided to stop at the Gate Petroleum gas station to purchase a bottle of wine.
Tommie Stornes, Leland Brunson, Jordan Davis, and Tevin Thompson had been spending the day traveling to various malls when they decided to go to the Gate Petroleum gas station in order to buy gum and cigarettes.
Murder
The shooting of Jordan Davis took place in Jacksonville in
Duval County. Around 7:30 p.m., four teenage boys (Leland Brunson, Jordan Davis, Tommie Stornes, and Tevin Thompson) stopped at a Gate Petroleum gas station. Stornes left his red
SUV
A sport utility vehicle (SUV) is a car classification that combines elements of road-going passenger cars with features from off-road vehicles, such as raised ground clearance and four-wheel drive.
There is no commonly agreed-upon definitio ...
running while he went into the store. Brunson, Davis, and Thompson remained in the vehicle listening to music which was described as "very loud." Dunn, driving a black sedan, and his fiancée Rhonda Rouer pulled into the right adjacent parking spot.
Rouer left their car to purchase white wine and chips.
She testified that Dunn told her "I hate that thug music," before she left the car for the store, though Dunn claims he used the phrase "rap crap."
The
bass from the loud music playing in the teens' SUV annoyed Dunn, who asked for it to be turned down.
The front seat passenger, Tevin Thompson, initially complied and turned the volume down, but Jordan Davis requested the volume be turned back up.
Davis' protests continued and an independent witness overheard Dunn say "No, you're not gonna talk to me that way." Dunn, who had a concealed weapons permit,
took a handgun out of his glove compartment and started firing at Davis' door, hitting him in the legs, lungs, and
aorta
The aorta ( ) is the main and largest artery in the human body, originating from the left ventricle of the heart and extending down to the abdomen, where it splits into two smaller arteries (the common iliac arteries). The aorta distributes ...
. As the SUV backed up to evade his gunshots, Dunn opened his own door and continued firing at the car in shooter's stance, as the boys ducked for cover. Dunn later testified that he still feared for his safety as well as that of Rouer who was to return to the vehicle imminently.
After the shooting, Stornes drove the SUV away to a nearby
parking lot
A parking lot (American English) or car park (British English), also known as a car lot, is a cleared area intended for parking vehicles. The term usually refers to an area dedicated only for parking, with a durable or semi-durable surface ...
and stopped to find Davis "gasping for air".
Rouer returned to Dunn's car. They returned to their hotel where they ordered pizza. Dunn did not contact the police. The next morning Rouer saw a report about the shooting on the news indicating that Jordan Davis had died. Dunn testified that on the drive home he called a neighbor who works in law enforcement to arrange to speak to him about the shooting, but phone records indicate that the neighbor actually called him, and Rouer testified that the shooting was never mentioned during the call. Dunn returned to his home in
Satellite Beach
Satellite Beach is a coastal city in Brevard County, Florida, U.S. The population was 11,346 at the 2020 United States Census, and it is located with the Atlantic Ocean to the east and the Indian River to the west.
Satellite Beach is part of t ...
the following day at 10:30 a.m., where he was arrested after an eyewitness reported his license plate to police.
After his arrest, Dunn claimed that Davis threatened him with a "gun or a stick". Dunn's fiancée, who served as an
adversarial witness, said no such item was mentioned to her at any point. Investigators later searched the teenagers' SUV and found no weapons.
Forensic scientists
Forensic science, also known as criminalistics, is the application of science to criminal and civil laws, mainly—on the criminal side—during criminal investigation, as governed by the legal standards of admissible evidence and criminal ...
determined that in the short distance the boys traveled, a weapon could not have been stashed in a place that would not have been immediately visible to crime scene investigators. Contrary to Dunn's claim that he mentioned a weapon to Rouer, she testified that he never mentioned a gun either that night or the next day.
Legal proceedings
Shortly after Davis's death, his parents, Ron Davis and
Lucy McBath
Lucia Kay McBath (née Holman; born June 1, 1960) is an American politician serving as the U.S. representative from Georgia's 6th congressional district. The district, once represented by Republican Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich, includes ma ...
, and some of the other vehicle occupants, filed civil complaints against Dunn. They were represented by
John Michael Phillips
John Michael Phillips (born February 4, 1975) is an American lawyer, consumer and civil rights advocate, and legal commentator. He is licensed to practice law in Florida, New York, Georgia, Alabama, Texas, Oklahoma, Illinois and Washington, DC. P ...
in wrongful death and defamation lawsuits against Dunn. The cases were settled for an undisclosed amount in January 2014. Dunn's insurance company, Progressive Select Insurance, challenged its duty to cover the lawsuit, but dismissed its lawsuit in conjunction with the settlement.
In his criminal trial, Dunn had been declared "broke."
In closing arguments at the first trial, the defense lawyer for Dunn cited the language of Florida's
stand-your-ground law
A stand-your-ground law (sometimes called "line in the sand" or "no duty to retreat" law) provides that people may use deadly force when they reasonably believe it to be necessary to defend against certain violent crimes (right of self-defense) ...
.
On February 15, 2014, after more than 30 hours of deliberation, the jury found Dunn guilty on the three counts of attempted murder. The jury could not reach an agreement on the charge of first-degree murder, and the judge declared a
mistrial
In law, a trial is a coming together of parties to a dispute, to present information (in the form of evidence) in a tribunal, a formal setting with the authority to adjudicate claims or disputes. One form of tribunal is a court. The tribunal, w ...
on that count. Former Florida state attorney
Angela Corey
Angela Corey (born October 31, 1954) is a former Florida State's Attorney for the Fourth Judicial Circuit Court, which includes Duval, Nassau and Clay counties—including Jacksonville and the core of its metropolitan area. The first woman to h ...
stated that her office would seek a retrial for this charge. Dunn's attorney subsequently requested that sentencing on the four counts of which Dunn already had been convicted be delayed until after Dunn's retrial.
Dunn faced a minimum of 75 years in prison on the following counts: a minimum mandatory sentence of 20 years for each count of attempted second-degree murder, and up to 15 years for firing into a moving vehicle.
Jury selection in Dunn's
retrial
A new trial or retrial is a recurrence of a court case. A new trial may potentially be ordered for some or all of the matters at issue in the original trial. Depending upon the rules of the jurisdiction and the decision of the court that ordered ...
began on September 22, 2014, and opening statements took place on September 25. Dunn was found guilty on October 1, 2014, at the conclusion of the retrial.
Dunn was given a sentence of life in prison without parole plus 90 years, ensuring he will never be released from prison for the remainder of his life.
Following the trial, Dunn's attorney filed for appeal with the
First District Court of Appeal for the State of Florida. On November 17, 2016, his appeal was denied.
On June 22, 2020, the
Florida Supreme Court
The Supreme Court of Florida is the highest court in the U.S. state of Florida. It consists of seven members: the chief justice and six justices. Six members are chosen from six districts around the state to foster geographic diversity, and one ...
rejected Dunn's appeal and refused to take the case. Dunn stated that he received "
ineffective assistance of counsel
In United States law, ineffective assistance of counsel (IAC) is a claim raised by a convicted criminal defendant asserting that the defendant's legal counsel performed so ineffectively that it deprived the defendant of the constitutional right gua ...
". The justices did not explain their reasons behind the refusal.
Aftermath
Reactions
Dunn's former neighbor, Charles Hendrix, said he was not surprised by his behavior.
Hendrix described Dunn as arrogant and controlling, adding that Dunn's ex-wives told him that Dunn was violent and abusive toward them, although he never personally witnessed this.
Hendrix spoke of a previous discussion where Dunn asked him if he knew anyone who would "take care of" someone who infuriated him in an unrelated incident, and Hendrix interpreted further discussion as Dunn wanting to send a
hit
Hit means to strike someone or something.
Hit or HIT may also refer to:
Arts, entertainment and media Fictional entities
* Hit, a fictional character from '' Dragon Ball Super''
* Homicide International Trust, or HIT, a fictional organization ...
on this person.
Davis' father Ron Davis said, "I'm in constant contact with Tracy Martin,
Trayvon's father, and I text Sybrina
rayvon's motherall the time and I just want to let them know, every time I get justice for Jordan, it's going to be justice for Trayvon, for us." He said he wanted to confront Dunn in jail about his son's murder.
Rebecca Dunn, Dunn's daughter, defended her father's story, by her statement during an interview, "He is going to protect himself if he sees no other way than to bring out his gun, then that's what he's going to do."
She described Dunn as "a good man. He's not a racist. He's very loving."
Davis' mother,
Lucy McBath
Lucia Kay McBath (née Holman; born June 1, 1960) is an American politician serving as the U.S. representative from Georgia's 6th congressional district. The district, once represented by Republican Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich, includes ma ...
, ran for Congress in
Georgia's 6th congressional district
Georgia's 6th congressional district is a congressional district in the U.S. state of Georgia. , it is represented by Democrat Lucy McBath. The Georgia 6th district's boundaries were redrawn following the 2020 census to be significantly more Re ...
in 2018, running on a platform that included reform of gun laws.
McBath cited the activism of students after the
Stoneman Douglas High School shooting
On February 14, 2018, 19-year-old Nikolas Cruz opened fire on students and staff at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in the Miami suburban town of Parkland, Florida, murdering 17 people and injuring 17 others. Cruz, a former student at t ...
as a reason for her run. She defeated incumbent
Karen Handel
Karen Christine Handel (née Walker; born April 18, 1962) is an American businesswoman and politician. A member of the Republican Party, Handel served as chair of the Fulton County Board of Commissioners from 2003 to 2006, as Secretary of State ...
, winning 160,139 votes (50.5%) to Handel's 156,875 (49.5%).
In
2020
2020 was heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to global Social impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, social and Economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, economic disruption, mass cancellations and postponements of events, COVID- ...
, she defeated Handel in a rematch to win reelection to a second term.
Media coverage
The murder is one of many to be referenced by public activists (which includes many black parents) as a reminder that unarmed children who died at the hands of police or white men, mattered as individual human beings.
ABC News
ABC News is the news division of the American broadcast network ABC. Its flagship program is the daily evening newscast ''ABC World News Tonight, ABC World News Tonight with David Muir''; other programs include Breakfast television, morning ...
says the case has become part of the national conversation about the dangers facing young black men in America today. The murder is believed to have inspired
activism
Activism (or Advocacy) consists of efforts to promote, impede, direct or intervene in Social change, social, Political campaign, political, economic or Natural environment, environmental reform with the desire to make Social change, changes i ...
from the
Black Lives Matter movement
Black Lives Matter (abbreviated BLM) is a decentralized political and social movement that seeks to highlight racism, discrimination, and racial inequality experienced by black people. Its primary concerns are incidents of police br ...
. During the
2016 Democratic National Convention
The 2016 Democratic National Convention was a presidential nominating convention, held at the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, from July 25 to 28, 2016. The convention gathered delegates of the Democratic Party, the majo ...
, Davis' mother, Lucy McBath, talked about supporting the Black Lives Matter movement and said "His death doesn't overshadow his life."
Documentaries
In January 2015, the documentary ''
3 ½ Minutes, 10 Bullets'' (originally titled ''3 ½ Minutes'') premiered at the
Sundance Film Festival
The Sundance Film Festival (formerly Utah/US Film Festival, then US Film and Video Festival) is an annual film festival organized by the Sundance Institute. It is the largest independent film festival in the United States, with more than 46,66 ...
. The documentary, directed by
Marc Silver, explores the shooting, the trial, and Florida's Stand Your Ground laws. The documentary won the U.S. Documentary Special Jury Award for Social Impact at the 2015 Sundance Film Festival. The film distribution was sold to
HBO
Home Box Office (HBO) is an American premium television network, which is the flagship property of namesake parent subsidiary Home Box Office, Inc., itself a unit owned by Warner Bros. Discovery. The overall Home Box Office business unit is ba ...
.
Davis's story also features in the 2015 documentary film ''The Armor of Light'', the directorial debut of Disney heir
Abigail Disney
Abigail Edna Disney (born January 24, 1960) is an American documentary film producer, philanthropist, and social activist. She produced the 2008 documentary ''Pray the Devil Back to Hell''. Disney and Kathleen Hughes are producers and directors ...
. The film follows
Rob Schenck
Robert Leonard Schenck (born 1958) is an American Evangelical clergyman who ministers to elected and appointed officials in Washington, D.C., and serves as president of a non-profit organization named for Dietrich Bonhoeffer. Since 1982, Schenck ...
, a pro-life Evangelical minister; Lucy McBath, the mother of teenager Jordan Davis; and attorney
John Michael Phillips
John Michael Phillips (born February 4, 1975) is an American lawyer, consumer and civil rights advocate, and legal commentator. He is licensed to practice law in Florida, New York, Georgia, Alabama, Texas, Oklahoma, Illinois and Washington, DC. P ...
as they interact in the years after the shooting. The film debates the question: "Is it possible to be both pro-gun and pro-life?" ''The Armor of Light'' premiered at the
Tribeca Film Festival
The Tribeca Festival is an annual film festival organized by TriBeCa Productions, Tribeca Productions. It takes place each spring in New York City, showcasing a diverse selection of film, episodic, talks, music, games, art, and immersive progra ...
in April 2015 before opening theatrically on October 30, 2015.
See also
*
Crime in Florida
Crime in Florida refers to crime occurring within the U.S. State of Florida. With a population of 20,612,439 in 2016, Florida had 642,512 crimes reported including 1,111 murders, 88,700 violent, 553,812 property crimes, and 5,528 rapes.
Policing ...
*
Black Lives Matter
Black Lives Matter (abbreviated BLM) is a decentralized political and social movement that seeks to highlight racism, discrimination, and racial inequality experienced by black people. Its primary concerns are incidents of police bruta ...
*
Mothers of the Movement
Mothers of the Movement is a group of women whose African American children have been killed by police officers or by gun violence. Members of the group have appeared on various television shows, at award ceremonies, and political events to shar ...
Notes
References
External links
''Arrest and Booking Report of Incident'' michaeldunntrial.com; archived from the original February 15, 2014.
The Jordan Davis Foundation
{{DEFAULTSORT:Davis, Jordan
2012 in Florida
2012 controversies in the United States
2012 murders in the United States
21st century in Jacksonville, Florida
African-American history of Florida
2010s crimes in Florida
Deaths by firearm in Florida
Deaths by person in Florida
Murder in Florida
Noise pollution
Race and law in the United States
Trials in the United States
Murdered African-American people
People murdered in Florida
Black Lives Matter
November 2012 crimes
Controversies in Florida
History of racism in Florida
Incidents of violence against boys
Race-related controversies in the United States