Three teenagers appeared before a judge Wednesday following a police-involved shooting connected to an armed carjacking in Homestead.
Authorities said 18-year-old Stephan Jones was shot by a deputy during the incident and is now hospitalized. He faces charges of aggravated assault on a law enforcement officer, improper exhibition of a firearm, and resisting an officer without violence.
Police union expresses concern
Steadman Stahl, president of the South Florida Police Benevolent Association, told CBS News Miami he was alarmed by the case.
“It’s a sign of the times,” Stahl said. “It’s lucky the offender isn’t dead. Pointing a gun at a police officer will get this reaction.”
Prosecutor links suspect to violent gang
Assistant State Attorney Aaron Simkovitz called the case “unbelievably serious,” telling Miami-Dade Circuit Judge Mindy Glazer that Jones was a member of a violent street gang tied to homicides and robberies.
Carjacking at Homestead fitness club
The confrontation followed a carjacking Monday night, when a woman’s vehicle was stolen at gunpoint outside Empire Fitness Club near S.W. 279th Street and S.W. 127th Avenue. Deputies located the suspects about 20 minutes later. Surveillance footage captured two suspects running from deputies before being apprehended.
Judge reviews arrest affidavit
During Wednesday’s hearing, Judge Glazer read details from the arrest affidavit describing how Jones ignored commands to stop and show his hands.
“He turned around, facing the officer with a black rifle pointed in his direction,” Glazer read. “The officer thought he was going to be shot.”
Jones’s mother told the court she only learned that morning her son had been shot twice, with wounds to one arm.
“He’s lucky to be alive,” Glazer replied. “He was shot. That is terrible.”
Bond and restrictions
Jones told the judge he had graduated from school but was not working. His mother said he stayed home to babysit his siblings. Glazer reminded her that no guns should be in the home, noting Jones had previously been adjudicated as a delinquent.
Jones’s bond was set at $7,500. He must wear a GPS monitor, observe an 11 p.m. to 6 a.m. curfew, and will be represented by a public defender.
Two other suspects charged
Eighteen-year-old Tyquawn Davis was charged with robbery, armed carjacking, and resisting officers without violence. Police said he held the carjacking victim at gunpoint before stealing her black Chevrolet Tahoe.
Judge Glazer found probable cause and ordered Davis held without bond, citing the seriousness of the charges, one of which carries a possible life sentence.
A third suspect, age 16, also faces charges in connection with the crime.
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