Palm Bay, Florida – A 26-year-old man has been indicted by a Brevard grand jury for the fatal shooting of three family members and the injuring of two others in Palm Bay, Florida. The indictment clears the way for the state attorney’s office to determine whether to seek the death penalty, as questions about the shooter’s mental competency arise.
Ta’Shawn Taylor has been charged with three counts of first-degree premeditated murder in the January 20th shooting deaths of his mother, sister, and grandfather in their family home. He also faces two counts of attempted murder for shooting his 15-year-old nephew and another relative.
The shooting left the 15-year-old nephew, Kamauri Curry, critically injured after being shot in the head. He is currently undergoing extensive physical therapy in his recovery process. The tragic incident unfolded at Woodlake Village Apartments, where reports of multiple people being shot led Palm Bay police to the scene.
According to police reports, Taylor entered a bedroom in the apartment and fired several rounds, first striking his mother and then his nephew. He then proceeded to fatally shoot his grandfather and sister, while another family member suffered a graze to the neck from one of the shots.
This is the third incident involving multiple homicides in Brevard County since the beginning of 2023. The case raises concerns about the spike in such violent incidents, with two other similar incidents occurring within a week of Taylor’s family shootings.
In one of the previous incidents, a man was charged with shooting his teenage daughter and three others after becoming upset over his relationship with the teen. In the other incident, a man killed his grandfather, a retired Catholic priest, and the priest’s sister before being shot and killed by police.
The indictment of Ta’Shawn Taylor and the subsequent decision regarding the pursuit of the death penalty highlights the urgency of addressing mental health and conflict resolution to prevent such tragic events in the future.