A central Florida software developer and a high school senior crossed paths at a Jacksonville gas station on Black Friday in 2012.
At the end of their chance encounter, the high-school senior was dead.
The circumstances that lead to the death of 17-year-old high school student Jordan Davis will be front and center during the first-degree murder trial of Michael Dunn, set to begin February 3.
A FATAL ENCOUNTER
A red SUV carrying four young passengers blared loud music from its speakers in the parking lot of the GATE gas station on Southside Boulevard, police said. One of the passengers was 17-year-old Jordan Davis. He and his friends stopped at the gas station to get a snack after shopping at the nearby St. Johns Town Center.
Michael Dunn and his live-in girlfriend Rhonda Rouer parked next to the SUV. The two had just attended the wedding reception of Dunn's son. Rouer told police that Dunn had three rum drinks before driving. Dunn and Rouer were driving back to their hotel nearby when they stopped at the GATE for wine.
Rouer told police Dunn said "I hate that thug music," when the couple pulled up next to the SUV holding Davis.
An argument broke out between the passengers of the car and Dunn once Rouer walked into the store, according to police.
Dunn told police he asked the passengers to turn down the music, but when he rolled up his window the music was cranked up again. Then he says a passenger in the back seat of the SUV began threatening him.
"I saw a barrel come up on the window, like a single shot shotgun where there is a barrel. I didn't see this part of the barrel I saw that part of the barrel. It was either a barrel or a stick, but sir they're like we are going to kill you and then they said you are dead (expletive)," Dunn told police when he was interviewed.
That's when Dunn said he reached into his glove box, pulled out his gun and fired multiple times into the SUV.
The shots killed Jordan Davis.
No weapon was found in the SUV. Dunn claims the shooting was in self-defense. No weapon was found in the SUV the teens were driving nor was one found at the scene.
NATIONAL SPOTLIGHT, PUBLIC RECORDS BATTLE
The case has garnered national attention, with some drawing similarities between it and the George Zimmerman trial. In both cases, African American teens were killed after a confrontation with older, armed, white or Hispanic men. In both cases, Stand Your Ground defenses have been discussed but not employed. State Attorney Angela Corey will be the lead prosecutor in the murder trial of Dunn.
The case has also been the focus of a battle for access to public records, with local media -- including First Coast News and our news partner the Florida Times-Union -- filing several motions to require that public records in the case be made available.
The trial will likely reach televisions across the nation. First Coast News will be your best source for information as the trial proceeds.
INTERACTIVE ELEMENTS
In the days following the incident the key events reached from central Florida to Atlanta. Roll over the key points on the map below to find out what happened and where.
INTERACTIVE MAP: Key Locations in Michael Dunn Trial
DUNN LETTERS
The State Attorney's Office released the 156 pages of court documents from the State Attorney's Office, including evidence logs and letters Dunn wrote in jail.
You can view every page released by the State, including letters Dunn wrote to his girlfriend and grandmother, in this easy to read PDF file.
DUNN TIMELINE
From the night of Nov. 23, 2012 when Jordan Davis was shot and killed to the beginning of the trial Feb. 3, 2014, find out the key events to take place in the murder trial of Michael Dunn in chronological order by clicking through our interactive timeline, hosted by Dipity.
