UPDATE, SENTENCED TO LIFE - Jevaris Dorth found guilty of Dec. 27, 2021 death of Stanley Haybron in Floral City

UPDATE: On November 30, 2023, 22 year-old Jevaris Nathan Dortch was sentenced to life in prison, as a prison releasee reoffender, for the first-degree murder of Stanley Haybron, III, attempted first-degree murder of a second victim, attempted robbery with a firearm, and shooting into an occupied conveyance.

State Attorney's Office (SAO)
Fifth Judicial Circuit of Florida
William M. Gladson
Serving Marion, Lake, Citrus, Sumter, Hernando Counties

Citrus County, Florida - On November 16, 2023, after reviewing evidence and expert testimony during nearly six hours of deliberation, jurors found 22 year-old Jevaris Nathan Dortch guilty of charges relating to the 2021 murder of 21 year-old Stanley Haybron, III in Floral City. Dortch, now age 22, was found guilty of first-degree murder, attempted first-degree murder, attempted robbery with a firearm, and shooting into an occupied conveyance. Dortch's sentencing hearing is scheduled for November 30, 2023.

On December 27, 2021, the Citrus County Sheriff's Office (CCSO) responded to a call for service due to a shooting that had just occurred off South Great Oaks Drive in Floral City. Deputies found Stanley Haybron inside a vehicle with multiple gunshot wounds. He was pronounced deceased at the scene.

During their investigation, detectives determined that Dortch and his co-defendant, David Julian Murrell, who were both then age 20 and of Floral City, were traveling inside a vehicle with Stanley and another victim, a 27 year-old male, when Dortch and Murrell opened fire on the two victims. The second victim escaped from the vehicle and survived the attack, although he was wounded. The second victim gave descriptions of both Dortch and Murrell to investigators. Additional digital forensics evidence was uncovered during the investigation that confirmed the involvement of Dortch and Murrell in Stanley's death.

Thanks to the victim's cooperation and the investigative work by CSSO Detectives Nick Norton and Dan Slingerland, Dortch and Murrell were arrested just one day after the shooting.

This case was prosecuted by Assistant State Attorneys Blake Shore and Kevin Davis.

"This verdict echoes the collective voice of a community that refuses to let the actions of those who took the life of Stanley go unanswered," said William "Bill" Gladson, Fifth Judicial Circuit State Attorney. "The jury's verdict reflects the shared consensus that the perpetrators, far from being law-abiding citizens, deserve to be held accountable for their action."