TAMPA, Fla. – The four men convicted in the fatal ambush shooting of Jacksonville rapper Charles “Julio Foolio” Jones addressed the younger generation, advising them to stay away from the life that led them to prison.
Isaiah Chance, 23, Sean Gathright, 20, Rashad Murphy, 32, and Davion Murphy, 29, were all sentenced on Monday to life in prison without the possibility of parole. The sentences were mandatory based on Florida law for murder convictions.
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The men spoke before their sentence was handed down, offering advice to the younger generation.
“It ain’t worth it,” Chance said. “Like, me being a rapper from my city and Julio being a rapper from our city, it ain’t worth it. The dissing, the beefing the shooting, like for what? Like, for what? Like, when you’re sitting in your cell alone, cold, lonely as hell…everybody leave you. Like, nobody here for you. Like the ones that’s ride or die, your girlfriends, whoever you love, the only person there for you is your mother and maybe like one friend, maybe, but it ain’t worth it though, bro.”
Davion Murphy urged the men in his Jacksonville community to be better than him.
“The Gen Z generation, change your life and do something productive with your life because in this predicament, it ain’t worth it,” Davion Murphy said.
His brother, Rashad Murphy, simply said, “I love everybody.”
Davion and Rashad Murphy were each sentenced to an additional life sentence for conspiracy to commit murder; Davion and Rashad Murphy then each got three more life sentences for each count of attempted murder. Gathright was sentenced to 30 years for conspiracy to commit murder and 30 years for each of the three counts of attempted murder.
“Each of you still has a life of value, and going forward, the quality of the life that you have every day will come down to the choices you make,” Judge Michelle Sisco said. “I hope that, at least in the community in Jacksonville, there are serious changes.”
Court documents said the attack was in retaliation for an ongoing Jacksonville gang war between 6Block and allied gangs, Ace’s Top Killers (ATK), and 1200.
Jones was a known and documented member of the 6Block gang.
Prosecutors sought the death penalty for the four defendants, but the jury ultimately recommended life without parole.
In Oct. 2025, a jury found Alicia Andrews guilty of manslaughter for acting as a lookout and tracking Jones’ location before he was killed. She was set to be sentenced in Dec. 2025, but her attorneys filed an appeal saying Judge Michelle Sisco was biased and her conduct prevented them from having a fair trial.
On May 22, Andrews was sentenced to 15 years in prison for her role in his death.
Prosecutors filed a motion to reverse the decision.
During both trials, detectives testified that they used social media to track known gang-affiliated members and their activities.
Last week, Florida Governor Ron DeSantis signed House Bill 429, which modernizes Florida’s criminal gang statutes to allow prosecutors to use online admissions of gang affiliation, gang-related social media activity and other contemporary indicators to establish gang involvement.
Supporters say it’s another tool to help crack down on gang violence and hold people accountable. Critics argue parts of the law may not hold up in court.
Dari’one Flanigan was just 18-years-old when he was killed in a shooting connected to gang violence while caught in the crossfire.
“It’s a void that will never be filled,” Vonetta Nixon, his mother, said. “We’re still to this day, we’re still trying to pick up the pieces.”
Nixon said she hopes the House bill means more accountability.
“I hope it will change their mindset and perspective because now you actually are going to be held accountable,” she said.
But not everyone agrees with the approach.
“The problem is the bases that they’ve listed here are in violation of the Constitution,” Curtis Fallgatter, a criminal defense attorney said. “In a word, it’s ridiculous that they would believe this type of evidence could be admissible in court over the rules of hearsay, over the rules of opinion, to establish membership in a gang.”
Fallgatter said this bill will face legal challenges.
“Virtually every criteria, except maybe the admission, and of course, you can always use admissions if someone admits to a crime, you can use that against them,” Fallgatter said. “But all the others are nonsense, and they’re going to be subject to challenge.”
As Nixon continues searching for justice for her son, she’s hoping fewer moms have to walk the same road.
The new law is set to take effect Oct. 1.