A Florida defendant committed first-degree murder in a “targeted hit.”
After a five-day trial and only 40 minutes of deliberation, a Flagler County jury found defendant Marcus Chamblin guilty as charged of First-Degree Murder (Firearm), Attempted Second-Degree Murder (Firearm) and Shooting into Occupied Building.
Immediately following the verdict, the defendant was sentenced to life in prison.
In the early morning hours of October 12, 2019, the victims parked at a convenience store off of Palm Coast Parkway. One of the victims could then be seen on video surveillance walking up to the entrance and shaking hands with Chamblin’s co-defendant. When the victim went inside the business, his co-defendant is observed talking on the phone before leaving in his vehicle.
After the victim returned to the passenger seat of the vehicle he came in, Chamblin could be seen on video surveillance coming up to the rear side of the vehicle and shooting at it 16 times with an assault-style firearm.
The defendant then ran away from the scene. The passenger in the vehicle died shortly after from a gunshot wound to his chest. The driver was also shot once, but he recovered from his injuries at the hospital.
Using video surveillance in Palm Coast, Flagler County Sheriff’s Office Detectives were able to follow Chamblin until his co-defendant picked him up. They then left the state, traveling to Virginia and California.
Eventually, Chamblin and his co-defendant returned to Florida and they were arrested in Clay County on November 16, 2019, on outstanding warrants for charges unrelated to the homicide investigation.
Detectives uncovered an extensive amount of evidence during a 15-month investigation. A forensic examination of Chamblin’s cell phone showed that he was in constant contact with his co-defendant before the murder. A vast amount of social media posts also connected the defendant to the firearm used in the murder.
Another key piece of evidence was the clothes worn by Chamblin during the murder, which were found by detectives. The clothing connected to the defendant through his DNA. Gunshot residue on the clothing also connected to the defendant.
“This case illustrates how cheap human life has become to folks who live by violence,” State Attorney R.J. Larizza said about the case. “The defendant sprayed the vehicle with bullets from a long gun in the parking lot of a busy gas station/food mart. It was a miracle that more people weren’t injured or killed. Holding the defendant accountable may provide the families some peace, but the grief they suffer will remain.”
The case was investigated by the Flagler County Sheriff’s Office with assistance from several other law enforcement agencies. Assistant State Attorney Mark Johnson and Chief of Homicide Jason Lewis successfully tried the case for the state. The Honorable Terence Perkins presided over the case and pronounced sentence.
