A Jacksonville 13-year-old being charged as an adult in the murder of a man during a gun deal will receive a mental-health evaluation this week to determine whether he is competent to go to trial.
Circuit Judge Mark Borello granted a motion Tuesday from attorney Sissy Adams-Jones to have Jeremiah Elijah Hill examined to both determine whether he was insane at the time the shooting occurred and determine his competency to stand trial now.
After the court hearing Adams-Jones declined to discuss what mental-health issues Hill might have.
Hill is in jail on charges of first-degree murder in the death of 25-year-old Tony Vernon Johnson. He also has been charged with the attempted murder of 24-year-old Stephon Graham, armed robbery and possession of a firearm by an adjudicated delinquent.
His cousin - 18-year-old Keyshaun Nelson Hill - also is charged with murder. The third suspect, a 17-year-old who was arrested later, is in custody but prosecutors have not yet said if he'll be tried as an adult.
Police said the three drove to a North Main Street gas station June 10 to trade handguns with Johnson. After the exchange, Johnson was gunned down. Graham also was at the gas station and was shot several times as he tried to flee. The shooting was captured on surveillance cameras.
Hill is one of several area juveniles who has been charged as an adult recently:
- Sharron "Tommy" Townsend, 13, is charged with first-degree murder in the June 2014 shooting death of a homeless man at a strip mall on 103rd Street. He is scheduled to go on trial this month.
- Edgar Robles, 16, is charged with two counts of attempted murder and one count of shooting or throwing a deadly missile in the May 14 wounding of two girls on a Jacksonville school bus.
- Sergio Morgan-Wideman, 15, is charged with first-degree murder, robbery with a firearm and two counts of aggravated assault with a firearm in the May 19 killing of a store clerk in St. Augustine.Larry Hannan: (904) 359-4470