{"id":7683,"date":"2026-07-16T13:54:28","date_gmt":"2026-07-16T08:54:28","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/?p=7683"},"modified":"2026-07-16T13:54:28","modified_gmt":"2026-07-16T08:54:28","slug":"two-black-men-charged-with-murder-after-self-defense-shooting","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/?p=7683","title":{"rendered":"Two Black Men Charged With Murder After Self-Defense Shooting"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><script>\r\n  atOptions = {\r\n    'key' : '644b717812d811d6a1c1fc5b6ccd6fa6',\r\n    'format' : 'iframe',\r\n    'height' : 90,\r\n    'width' : 728,\r\n    'params' : {}\r\n  };\r\n<\/script>\r\n<script src=\"https:\/\/www.highperformanceformat.com\/644b717812d811d6a1c1fc5b6ccd6fa6\/invoke.js\"><\/script>\r\n<br \/>\n<\/p>\n<div itemprop=\"articleBody\">\n<section class=\"ione-key-points\">\n<ul>\n<li>Two men face life sentences for a self-defense shooting, despite claiming Stand Your Ground law.<\/li>\n<li>The judge ruled their self-defense ended when the victim retreated, despite still being armed.<\/li>\n<li>The NAACP questions whether the law is being applied fairly, regardless of race or background.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/section>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img decoding=\"async\" width=\"747\" height=\"467\" loading=\"lazy\" src=\"https:\/\/bossip.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/28\/2026\/07\/17841497795123.jpg?w=747&amp;strip=all&amp;quality=80\" alt=\"Golden judge gavel and police handcuffs. Symbolizing justice and legal proceedings. 3d rendering.\" class=\"wp-image-4602907\" srcset=\"https:\/\/bossip.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/28\/2026\/07\/17841497795123.jpg?strip=all&amp;quality=80 747w, https:\/\/bossip.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/28\/2026\/07\/17841497795123.jpg?resize=300%2C188&amp;strip=all&amp;quality=80 300w, https:\/\/bossip.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/28\/2026\/07\/17841497795123.jpg?resize=180%2C113&amp;strip=all&amp;quality=80 180w, https:\/\/bossip.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/28\/2026\/07\/17841497795123.jpg?resize=160%2C100&amp;strip=all&amp;quality=80 160w, https:\/\/bossip.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/28\/2026\/07\/17841497795123.jpg?resize=320%2C200&amp;strip=all&amp;quality=80 320w, https:\/\/bossip.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/28\/2026\/07\/17841497795123.jpg?resize=80%2C50&amp;strip=all&amp;quality=80 80w, https:\/\/bossip.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/28\/2026\/07\/17841497795123.jpg?resize=720%2C450&amp;strip=all&amp;quality=80 720w, https:\/\/bossip.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/28\/2026\/07\/17841497795123.jpg?resize=450%2C281&amp;strip=all&amp;quality=80 450w, https:\/\/bossip.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/28\/2026\/07\/17841497795123.jpg?resize=600%2C375&amp;strip=all&amp;quality=80 600w, https:\/\/bossip.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/28\/2026\/07\/17841497795123.jpg?resize=250%2C156&amp;strip=all&amp;quality=80 250w, https:\/\/bossip.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/28\/2026\/07\/17841497795123.jpg?resize=235%2C147&amp;strip=all&amp;quality=80 235w, https:\/\/bossip.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/28\/2026\/07\/17841497795123.jpg?resize=245%2C153&amp;strip=all&amp;quality=80 245w, https:\/\/bossip.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/28\/2026\/07\/17841497795123.jpg?resize=138%2C86&amp;strip=all&amp;quality=80 138w, https:\/\/bossip.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/28\/2026\/07\/17841497795123.jpg?resize=144%2C90&amp;strip=all&amp;quality=80 144w, https:\/\/bossip.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/28\/2026\/07\/17841497795123.jpg?resize=50%2C31&amp;strip=all&amp;quality=80 50w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 747px) 100vw, 747px\"\/><figcaption class=\"wp-element-caption\">Source: Tingting Ji \/ Getty<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Florida\u2019s controversial \u201c<a href=\"https:\/\/bossip.com\/4599446\/media-villainizing-black-woman-who-stood-her-ground-florida-walmart-shooting\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Stand Your Ground<\/a>\u201d law is back in the spotlight, and once again, folks are asking whether justice depends on who\u2019s standing in front of the judge. That\u2019s a rhetorical question, we already know the answer.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">According to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.news4jax.com\/news\/local\/2026\/07\/03\/its-heartbreaking-naacp-questions-stand-your-ground-denial-as-2-baker-county-mothers-say-sons-face-life-in-prison\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">News4JAX<\/a>, the Jacksonville NAACP is throwing its support behind Jamarian Byrd and Travis Roberts Jr., two Baker County men charged with first-degree murder after a June 2025 shooting that left 19-year-old Devin Powers Jr. dead and another teen wounded. If convicted, both men could spend the rest of their lives behind bars. That reality is terrifying according to their mothers who say the situation has turned the last year into an emotional nightmare.<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cYou know what that carries,\u201d Kalissa Warnick, Roberts\u2019 mother, told News4JAX. \u201cThat\u2019s life in prison.\u201d When asked what it feels like knowing that possibility is on the table, Warnick\u2019s answer was short:<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cIt\u2019s heartbreaking.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Latelsa Bowen, Byrd\u2019s mother, described the last year as overwhelming. \u201cAll kinds of feelings \u2014 just hurt, scared, anxious, just everything,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The case stems from a chaotic attack in Macclenny, Florida where Byrd and Roberts have maintained they fired in self-defense after Powers allegedly pointed a shotgun at them and opened fire first. Their attorneys argued the pair should receive immunity under Florida\u2019s Stand Your Ground law, which protects people who use deadly force when they reasonably fear death or serious bodily harm. <\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">But the judge ruled there was a catch.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">While the court agreed the men initially had a legal right to defend themselves, that protection allegedly ended the moment Powers began retreating. The judge pointed to statements and evidence indicating the defendants continued firing as Powers ran away, with investigators alleging at least 47 rounds were fired into the neighborhood. Because of that, the court denied their Stand Your Ground immunity request, allowing the murder case to move forward. <\/p>\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-9-16 wp-has-aspect-ratio\"\/>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The Jacksonville NAACP isn\u2019t buying that conclusion. Organization president Isaiah Rumlin said the case is exactly the type of situation Stand Your Ground was designed for and questioned whether the law is being applied fairly. The civil rights group released a statement expressing \u201cdeep concern\u201d over the ruling and called for equal application of Florida\u2019s self-defense law regardless of race, neighborhood, or background.<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In a July 1 news release, the NAACP said it is \u201cdeeply concerned\u201d by the denial of immunity and called for \u201cfair and equal application of Florida\u2019s Stand Your Ground law\u201d in the Byrd and Roberts cases. The group also pointed to what it described as evidence presented in court and said, \u201cjustice must be served fairly, consistently, and without regard to race, neighborhood, or background.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Meanwhile, both defendants are appealing the decision, arguing the danger hadn\u2019t actually ended because Powers was still armed. As that appeal plays out, their mothers are left watching their sons fight charges that could cost them their freedom forever.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The legal battle now boils down to one question with enormous consequences, when does self-defense officially end? Depending on who you ask, that answer could determine whether two young men walk free, or spend life in prison. <\/p>\n<aside id=\"ione-ve-expanded\" class=\"ione-ve\">\n<\/aside><\/div>\n<script async=\"async\" data-cfasync=\"false\" src=\"https:\/\/pl30214220.effectivecpmnetwork.com\/9ab3d4df8a7e1a6171e16ddbf732cc19\/invoke.js\"><\/script>\r\n<div id=\"container-9ab3d4df8a7e1a6171e16ddbf732cc19\"><\/div>\r\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Two men face life sentences for a self-defense shooting, despite claiming Stand Your Ground law. The judge ruled their self-defense ended when the victim retreated, despite still being armed. The NAACP questions whether the law is being applied fairly, regardless of race or background. Source: Tingting Ji \/ Getty Florida\u2019s controversial \u201cStand Your Ground\u201d law&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":7684,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/bossip.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/28\/2026\/07\/17841497795123.jpg?quality=80&strip=all&w=747&crop=0,0,100,467px","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[20],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-7683","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-celebrity-gossip"],"brizy_media":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7683","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=7683"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7683\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/7684"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=7683"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=7683"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=7683"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}