JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – A 36-year-old man was found shot to death on the porch of a Westside home Tuesday morning, and Jacksonville police are looking for the killer.
Police were called to the 3900 block of Lane Avenue South, between Jammes Road and Interstate 295, about 10:40 a.m. after residents reported hearing gunshots.
Police said Keith Sterling was at the house when a man drove up in a gold car. The man got out of the car and pulled a handgun from his waistband, then shot Sterling, police said.
The shooter fled in the car in an unknown direction, police said.
The shooter is described as a black man between 40 and 50 years old, and is said to be about 5 feet 8 inches tall and 160 pounds, with a medium build and medium-colored complexion. He was last seen wearing a white T-shirt and brown pants.
The man's vehicle is described as an older model gold four-door Toyota Camry with no tint on the windows. It is also said to have had a spoiler on the rear trunk area.
Investigators didn't say whether the two men knew each other. They did say Sterling was in the area visiting a friend.
Sgt. T.K. Waters said there was no danger to the community.
"You wouldn't think nothing like that would happen around here," one woman said. "I have kids that live in the house. That's kind of scary."
This marks the second killing within a mile radius this year, according to the Jacksonville Sheriff's Office's crime mapping tool. There have been 70 burglaries and 11 robberies within a half-mile of the killing.
"Used to really love it here. The last few years it's gotten really bad," said James Holcombe, who's lived in the area for the last 50 years.
Jason Brown said he used to live in the area, and his mother still does. He said she's thought about moving.
"She has considered it. I just don't know," Brown said.
Meanwhile, Brown is thinking about the victim's family.
"I'm very sorry for them," he said. "My heart goes out to them and their family."
Others are thinking about their neighborhood and other crimes that have happened around there recently.
"I hope for change," Holcombe said. "I don't know what they can do about it. It's getting bad everywhere."
Anyone with any information about the killing is asked to call Crime Stoppers at 866-845-TIPS.