Syncere Ja’Taron Trice was found guilty as charged of Second Degree Murder with a Firearm, following a two-day trial in Lee County.
Assistant State Attorneys Andreas Gardiner and Sara Miller, of the State Attorney’s Office Homicide Unit, prosecuted the case.
In January 2022, the Fort Myers Police Department received a 911 call about a shooting on Franklin Street, in Southward Village. A 16-year-old victim had been shot and died at the scene. The criminal investigation determined there had been a fight between some teenage girls, when someone on scene pulled out a gun. The victim, stepped in front of the girls and was shot protecting them.
The suspect could not be immediately identified, but the investigation led to Trice’s identity and arrest. The defendant was 19 years old at the time of the shooting.
The defendant is scheduled to be sentenced on November 6, 2023.
Samantha Syoen – State Attorney’s Office, Communications Director