A brave football coach, Ben Becker, 20, is in the hospital with critical gunshot wounds after shielding his team from a drive-by in Jacksonville, Florida. Sadly, a young boy named Prince Holland was killed in the shooting.
Family, friends, and members of the community gathered Friday night to honor the life of 13-year-old Holland. Holland, who was coming home from football practice, was one of five people inside the SUV when it was hit by a barrage of bullets, injuring two others. He was the sole victim of death.
According to Action News Jax, the drive-by shooting began at Moncrief and New Kings roads, where Becker and his students were leaving football tryouts at the Legends Center and Gymnasium nearby.
As they loaded themselves into the car, the rounds hit their car, and Becker was shot 10 times as he dove to cover the children from bullets.
“Inside the vehicle during the shooting were five victims ranging from 11 to 20 years old,” the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office said in a statement. “Two of these were not injured during the shooting, while three of the victims in the vehicle sustained serious injuries to include a 13-year-old that died at the scene.”
Attorney John Phillips, who is representing Becker, said he had had several surgeries for his injuries. The Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office is still working to identify suspects in the case. Waters said his team is dedicating an additional 420 person-hours “to focus on these issues” of violence in the community.
He also mentioned that State Attorney Melissa Nelson’s office would hire two additional attorneys “to focus on these issues and these young men in our community that is committing this violence,” Waters said.
Sheriff Waters expressed his dedication to the case noting he and his team will work tirelessly to find answers and suspects.
“This grief has emboldened us and hardened our resolve,” Sheriff T.K. Waters said. “To those responsible for this terrible act, know this: We will not rest, we will not tire, we will not waver.”
Mayor Lenny Curry said she would continue to support the Jacksonville Sheriff’s Office and the State Attorney’s Office as the case continues.
“We will not rest until the people responsible are held accountable,” Curry said.
On Monday, Prince’s family member, Angel, spoke with Action News Jax about her pain following the loss of the young man.
“You took one of the biggest, most prized possessions to a mother, and that’s her child,” she said. “What if it was your son? What if it was your brother? What if it was you? It could have been anybody, but instead, it was an innocent 13-year-old kid.”
