A deadly family dispute unfolded inside a quiet Jacksonville home, ending with a father shot multiple times as he sat on his living room couch and a son now facing decades in prison.
JACKSONVILLE, FL – A 29-year-old man who admitted to shooting and killing his father during a late-night confrontation in November 2024 was sentenced Wednesday to 45 years in state prison, according to Duval County court records. Garry Charles Bartlett, Jr. previously pleaded guilty in early May to one count of second-degree murder with a weapon in the death of 69-year-old Garry Charles Bartlett, Sr.
The sentence, handed down by Circuit Judge Jeb Branham, falls near the lower end of a partially negotiated plea agreement that required a minimum of 40 years and allowed for a maximum of life in prison. Court records show Bartlett, Jr. received credit for nearly two years already spent in pretrial detention.
Details of the shooting and 911 call
The shooting occurred on Nov. 20, 2024, at a home on Fawn Lake Drive in Jacksonville’s Deer Cove neighborhood. According to an arrest report, Bartlett, Jr. called 911 after the killing and told dispatchers he had shot his father.
“He also stated his father was deceased,” the report reads. “While on the telephone with police dispatch, the suspect informed dispatchers that he placed the gun he used to shoot his father was in the back bedroom of the residence. He also informed dispatchers that CPR was not necessary as his father was already deceased.”
Officers arrived and found the defendant waiting in the front yard. A search revealed one 9 mm casing and one live round in his pocket. Inside the home, officers located Bartlett, Sr. on the living room floor with multiple gunshot wounds.
Investigators documented 12 spent 9 mm casings in the living room and said the victim was “covered in blood.” The firearm, a Springfield Armory 9 mm handgun, was recovered from a bed in a back bedroom. Police said the weapon appeared to have malfunctioned, with two live rounds double-fed in the chamber and two additional rounds remaining in the magazine.
Suspect’s statements to detectives
After being read his Miranda rights, Bartlett, Jr. spoke with investigators and described the events leading up to the shooting, including allegations about his father that police said had not previously been documented.
According to the report, the defendant told detectives he had been “sexually assaulted” by his father as a child between the ages of 5 and 9. He also claimed his father made a comment the night before the shooting about “raping” him.
Police said Bartlett, Jr. did not act immediately after that alleged comment. Instead, he went to his room, where he remained for several hours listening to music and calling a friend before retrieving a gun and confronting his father.
The report details his account of the shooting: “[The son] admitted he shot and killed his father. He said he originally fired several rounds at the victim, but the victim was still breathing. He said he was tired of hearing his father’s agonal breathing causing him to ‘put one in the back of his f—ing head’ and the victim ‘shut the f— up after that.’ When asked how many times he shot his father, he said, ‘a lot’.”
Investigators said Bartlett, Jr. told them he returned to the bedroom after the shooting, placed the firearm on the bed, and remained there for several hours before eventually calling 911.
Community reaction
Neighbors in the Deer Cove area expressed shock following the incident, describing the family as quiet and largely unknown within the community.
“Nice people from what all I knew, kept to themselves,” one neighbor told First Coast News. “I don’t know much about the family themselves. I’m just totally surprised by the whole situation, for this neighborhood for sure.”
Authorities said Bartlett, Jr. waited an additional six to eight hours after the shooting before contacting emergency services.
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