A 17-year-old who was previously accused of being involved in a shooting that claimed the life of a 19-year-old after a Jones High School playoff football game in November has been released after the only witness to the incident provided contradictory statements.
On Monday, March 20, State Attorney Monique H. Worrell released a statement indicating that her office will not move forward with pressing charges against Jeremiah Cundiff, who was arrested in December in connection with the shooting death of Gamaine Patrick Brown.
Brown was shot and killed on November 12, 2022, in the parking lot at Jones High School just after a playoff football game had wrapped up.
During that incident, Orlando Police Department officers who were working extra duty at the Jones High School vs. Wekiva High School football game responded to the sound of gunshots fired at around 8:22 p.m. in a parking lot. Brown was pronounced deceased at the scene, while two other victims were transported to the hospital with injuries, one by police, and one self-transported.
Throughout their investigation, police relied heavily on the accounts of a 15-year-old female student who originally told police that the shooter was a “person wearing all-black clothing.” The witness identified the shooter by the nickname “T8.”
Later, when police showed the witness a surveillance photo from the night of the shooting, she identified Cundiff in the photo as the person who shot Brown.
In that photo, Cundiff was wearing clothing that did not match the witness’s original description. Standing next to Cundiff in the photo was a person fitting the description, who other witnesses identified as “T8.”
According to State Attorney Worrell’s office, the witness “lied to police about the potential involvement of one of her friends” before modifying her original statement to clarify that all of the shooters were wearing masks and that she “did not see the face of the shooter.”
After Cundiff was arrested, police showed that witness a lineup that included his photo, and she was unable to identify him as the shooter.
Other witnesses described the circumstances surrounding the shooting in ways that differed “significantly” from what the original witness described. None of those witnesses provided any evidence suggesting Cundiff was responsible, and many confirmed that Cundiff does not go by the nickname “T8,” but rather, is referred to as “G.”
Authorities say there is no further video evidence of the shooting because the area where the shooting occurred was the darkest part of the parking lot.
Shell casings recovered from that night show that suspects fired at least three different guns, but police were never able to recover any gun from Cundiff, and none of the recovered weapons were linked to him.
Authorities say there is currently no physical evidence from the scene that links any person to the incident.
“In summary, the only evidence we have is a single eyewitness whose account contradicts itself, and that of other witnesses at the scene. Even more problematic is that her claims actually suggest that another party may be responsible for Mr. Brown’s death. This simply cannot support a murder conviction against Mr. Cundiff,” reads the statement from State Attorney Worrell.
If you have any information that can help police in their investigation, contact the Orlando Police Department at 321-235-5300, or submit an anonymous tip through the Central Florida Crimeline at 800-423-8477.