JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Family and friends identified Dorian Hamilton as the 18-year-old shot and killed outside an Arlington apartment complex Wednesday night.
Hamilton was a father of an 8-month-old baby named Leilani Claire.
“He was kind. He was thoughtful. I was always impressed that he was willing to have hard conversations with his friends and people he loved,” Katelynd Todd said.
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Todd taught Hamilton when he was a student at Duval County Public Schools and quickly became a mother figure to the teen.
She has since moved to Gainesville where she is enrolled at the University of Florida’s Law School. She said she talked every day to Hamilton.
“When he described me — he’d say, ‘that’s my mom’. When I described him I would always say ‘son’.”
A ‘bonus mom’, Todd explained.
Hamilton was shot and killed in the parking lot of San Remo apartments in Arlington just before 8 p.m. Monday.
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The Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office said it had no suspect information and was canvassing the area for witnesses and surveillance footage.
Police told Action News Jax that the teen had multiple gunshot wounds.
“I don’t know what to make of it. I can’t think of anyone that would want to do that to him or why that would make sense to hurt him,” Todd said.
Hamilton just wrapped up his senior year and was enrolled at Florida State College Jacksonville in the school’s phlebotomy program.
Todd said even if he’s not physically here, his legacy will live on.
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“That natural instinct to just be good; to be a good human. That’s what I learned from him.”
A GoFundMe has been set up to help Hamilton’s family with funeral expenses and supporting his daughter. If you would like to donate, click here.
If you have any information regarding this incident, call JSO at 904-630-0500 or email JSOCrimeTips@jaxsheriff.org. To remain anonymous and receive a possible reward of up to $3,000 call Crime Stoppers at 1-866-845-TIPS (8477).
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