‘This didn’t need to happen;’ new arrest report and video show what led to teen’s murder

JACKSONVILLE, Fla — A teenager was shot and killed, Tuesday, after an exchange near a Murray Hill church, according to the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office.

The shooter is being held in Duval County jail, on no bond.

Blaise Conner, 17, was killed. He was described by friends as a smart, funny, caring, young man.

Click here for Blaise’s Gofundme

An internal email sent to Duval County school staff members showed he was a student at Riverside High School.

Josef Madison, 18, was arrested and charged with second-degree murder and possession of a firearm by a juvenile delinquent, in connection to Conner’s death. Madison appeared in front of a Duval County judge, Friday morning. He is currently being held on no bond.

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Prior to the shooting on Post Street in Murray Hill, an arrest report from JSO said, “the victim was involved in a fist fight earlier in the afternoon, not far from the shooting.”

Action News Jax, Meghan Moriarty, spoke exclusively with the neighbor who shot video of that fight taking place.

“We saw a group of about 30 some odd people, and there was a fist fight going on. A nasty fight going on,” the neighbor said. “My first reaction was -- I saw that majority of them had ski masks.”

We blurred the video because there are minors in it, along with several people who did not commit a crime. The neighbor who took the video didn’t want to show his face on camera, because of the active investigation. His video is believed to have helped police in their search for the suspect.

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The arrest report said, “a concerned citizen captured the fight on cell phone video and then provided the clip to the detective.” The video given to detectives matched descriptions, given by witnesses, of those at the scene of the crime and the fight prior.

The report said a witness said, “he and Josef (Madison) walked past the victim (Conner).” It goes on to say, “Josef made a statement referring to the victim.” It then said, “after the victim’s response, Josef..” and the rest of the report is blacked out, so it’s unclear what happened next.

“This didn’t need to happen,” the neighbor told us.

Madison was arrested Thursday evening. Action News Jax went to Madison’s home, but his parents did not want to speak with us.

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We found that Madison was not supposed to have a gun until he was 24-years-old based on a previous arrest. In 2022, Madison was arrested for carrying a concealed firearm, aggravated assault, discharging a weapon on school property, and battery.

The arrest report from JSO said he was involved in an “online dispute” with a 20-year-old woman. The two decided to meet up to “settle their differences.” Madison punched the woman in the face and fired one shot in the air, according to police.

He was 17 when this happened and entered a plea deal.

Read: JSO makes arrest in Murray Hill shooting that killed 17-year-old Blaise Conner

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