According to law enforcement officials and the Miami-Dade State Attorney's Office, a group of young men from Florida are responsible for the shooting death of Sean Taylor on November 27, 2007. Taylor, who was 24 years old at the time of his death, was a former football star at the University of Miami who had gone on to a professional career with the Washington Redskins. Taylor was awakened in his home in Miami-Dade County at approximately 1:00 in the morning after hearing noises. Burglars had broken into his home. Taylor grabbed a machete and went to investigate what was causing the noises.
Investigators believe it was then that Taylor met a group of young men, all of whom are originally from Fort Myers, Florida. Venjah Hunte, 21; Jason Mitchell, 21; Timmy Lee Brown, 17; and Charles Wardlow, 19, have been arrested in conjunction with the crime, along with 18-year-old Eric Rivera, who police believe was the shooter. With the exception of Hunte, all of the men are being held without bond as they await trial on January 19, 2009, where each will face the possibility of life in prison. Prosecutors have stated that they will not seek the death penalty. Hunte, meanwhile, is attempting to retract a guilty plea he previously entered in exchange for a 39 year prison sentence. A judge is expected to rule on the matter at a hearing on June 19.
Regardless of which of the young men pulled the trigger, the state can pursue murder charges against all of them due to their involvement in a dangerous felony - burglary of an occupied dwelling - from which Taylor's death is not an altogether unforeseeable consequence. Florida Statute 782.04(1)(a)(2) lays out the provisions of Florida's felony murder rule; the burglary law is Florida Statute 810.02.
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