Duval County

Man shot on Kernan Boulevard, 2 suspects lead Jacksonville police on 13-mile chase

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Two people believed to be involved in a Friday afternoon shooting at an apartment complex on Kernan Boulevard South were taken into custody after leading police on a 13-mile chase that ended in a crash.

Neighbors tell Action News Jax reporter Ryan Nelson that the shots were fired in the Kernan Oaks apartment complex.

Officers were called to a reported shooting in the 3600 block of Kernan Boulevard South around 1:15 p.m., according to Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office Lt. Ronald Bilyew.

They found out a 20-year-old man was shot; that man was taken to the hospital with non-life-threatening injuries, Bilyew said.

Jeff Martin, a renter at the Kernan Oaks complex, described what it was like to hear the shots going off.

“I didn’t see anything, it just sounded like somebody emptied a rifle or a handgun out completely and it was kind of disconcerting, because it sounded like it was right here," Martin said.

Witnesses gave police a description of the suspect vehicle, a white Honda. An officer saw a white Honda turning into a nearby apartment complex.

Bilyew said an officer followed this vehicle for a bit. At some point, the driver of the car realized the officer was following them and began to flee before the officer turned their lights on.

At that point, Bilyew said police had reason to believe that the car was probably the one involved in the shooting, so a pursuit was authorized.

The pursuit continued down Beach Boulevard for 13 miles to the Church of Pentecost at 8709 Hogan Road.

Two suspects in the vehicle, young males between the ages of 16 to 20, were taken into custody, Bilyew said.

Several citizen vehicles were hit during the pursuit. Bilyew said the Sheriff’s Office wants those people to call JSO at 904-630-0500 and they will send an officer to fill out paperwork for their damage.