One of Jacksonville's youngest murder suspects enters plea

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — One of Jacksonville's youngest murder suspects entered a guilty plea in Duval County court on Tuesday.

Sharron Townsend was 12 when he was arrested for the death of a homeless man. Thomas Trent, 54, was found shot in the head near an abandoned restaurant on Jacksonville's Westside in 2014.

Judge accepted the plea.

Sharron is now 14. The agreement said he waived a 25 year minimum mandatory sentence.The judge will decide how much time Sharron will serve, which could be between 10 and 40 years.

Prosecuting attorney Alan Mizrahi said crimes like these make his job difficult.

Sharron is ineligible for juvenile sanctions. The State Attorney's Office denied it, according to the teen's attorney since it is a life sentence.

Judge said there will be a pre-sentence report, which will take about five weeks. The case is passed to August 22.

Townsend will be placed in a special facility until he is 18.

“The Department of Corrections has a special department for juveniles where he will be housed with other minors and when he turns 18 he will go into adult population,” Mizrahi said.

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