Gainesville man sentenced to 10 years in prison for drive-by shooting

Staff report

GAINESVILLE, Fla. – Devin Terrell Freeman, 23, has been sentenced to 10 years in prison after entering a plea of nolo contendere to a charge of attempted second-degree murder under Florida’s 10-20-Life statute.

Freeman was originally charged with attempted first-degree murder, which has a 20-year minimum, and shooting from a vehicle within 1,000 feet of a person after calls were received about someone shooting from a vehicle near 925 SW 4th Avenue at about 6:09 p.m. on October 23, 2023.

Several witnesses reportedly described the incident as a drive-by shooting; they said a small dark-colored vehicle stopped in the street and the front passenger got out and exchanged words with the victim, who was about 100 feet away. They said the suspect got back into the vehicle after the exchange, closed the door, and fired shots at the victim, then the vehicle sped away.

On April 17, Freeman entered a plea of nolo contendere to attempted second-degree murder, a lesser included offense, and shooting from a vehicle within 1,000 feet of a person. The maximum sentence for the charges is listed as 45 years on the plea agreement. The mandatory minimum for the second-degree murder charge is 10 years in prison, and the charge is a 10-20-Life charge, meaning that subsequent qualifying offenses will result in the next sentence in the sequence.

Judge Phillip Pena adjudicated Freeman guilty on both counts and sentenced him to two concurrent sentences of 10 years in prison, with credit for 177 days served.

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