Keon Newkirk Sentenced to 15 Years for Eastside Shooting

State Attorney Melissa Nelson announces the Honorable Kevin Blazs sentenced Keon Newkirk to 15 years in Florida State Prison following a Dec. 15, 2023, jury verdict of guilty for three counts of Attempted Manslaughter. Newkirk received five years for each count, which will run consecutively.

Around noon Sept. 4, 2021, officers with the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office were dispatched to an Eastside intersection in reference to persons being shot. When they arrived, they found two juveniles had been shot; they were transported to the hospital for their injuries and survived. A third juvenile was not hurt and stayed at the scene. A total of 21 rounds were fired. The victims told detectives a blue four-door car with tinted windows drove toward them and fired multiple rounds. Cameras in the area captured the juveniles, the scene, and the crime immediately before, during, and after the shooting. The owner of the car had reported it stolen, but detectives later found it unoccupied in a different part of town. A timestamped receipt for a fast-food restaurant was found in the center console. Detectives were able to compare camera footage from the crime scene and the restaurant to determine the driver was a known gang member. Further investigation forensically revealed Newkirk to be in the car, armed, and wearing the same clothes as the person shooting from the back of the car at the crime scene. The victims — two 14-year-olds and a 15-year-old — did not know Newkirk. Newkirk’s codefendant, Johnathan Matthews, also was found guilty of three counts of Attempted Manslaughter.

The case was investigated by the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office and was prosecuted by Assistant State Attorneys Leah Owens and Corie Posey.