JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — A Jacksonville teen jailed at 15 years old has been sentenced to 35 years in prison on his 18th birthday for the 2nd-degree murder of a 16-year-old in 2021.
Action News Jax reported in 2021 when De’Andre McCray was arrested and charged as an adult for the murder of 16-year-old Siradus Sirmans. He changed his plea to guilty in February 2024 and was sentenced on May 7.
READ: Teen boy accused of shooting, killing another teen boy in Jacksonville
McCray was sentenced to 35 years in prison, but because he was a juvenile then, he will be able to appeal his sentence in 25 years.
Sirmans was found dead in Woodstock Park on W. Beaver Street on June 8, 2021. He had a gunshot wound to the neck. Witnesses told police they saw a teen in a red jacket confronting Sirmans.
A warrant for McCray’s 2021 arrest read: “The witnesses stated that words were exchanged and that the suspect spit on the victim... When the victim moved toward the suspect for spitting on him, the suspect pulled out a gun, shot the victim, and fled the scene with the firearm.”
Other witnesses told police they were with McCray but left when an argument began. They heard gunfire and saw McCray and three friends who were with him fleeing. They identified him to the police and told them what he was wearing.
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