The family of 15-year-old Antwan Davis continues to grieve and search for justice.
- Family of slain teen wants Juvenile Justice Department probe
- Killer was supposed to be home on probation
- Investigators said slaying was part of drug deal gone bad
His killer, then-17-year-old Michael Anderson, pleaded guilty and was recently sentenced as an adult to 25 years in prison.
When Anderson killed Antwan, he was supposed to be home on probation. His probation officer testified that violations like that happened multiple times.
Now the victim’s family wants an investigation into the Juvenile Justice Department.
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“Antwan wasn’t even driving yet,” said Marilyn Calhoun, Antwan's aunt and legal guardian.
On the night of March 12, detectives said Antwan left his Ocoee home to meet up with Anderson to buy marijuana. Investigators said a drug deal gone bad led to Antwan's killing. Anderson used a stolen gun to shoot the 15-year-old in the back of his head as he was running away.
“He was just a kid,” Calhoun said.
Anderson fled and enlisted his girlfriend to hide the weapon. But days later, he was arrested and charged as an adult for second-degree murder.
Four months later and facing the possibility of life in prison, Anderson changed his plea to guilty. The judge sentenced him to 25 years.
“He got the minimum, and it’s not fair,” Calhoun said.
Anderson had a lengthy criminal record as a teenager. At 16, he was charged with grand theft, battery and criminal mischief. For those crimes, he was sentenced to community supervision until his 19th birthday.
But his probation officer, Jenny Sosa Burnaldi, testified that Anderson had a problem following the rules.
“There [were] times where I would come to the house, and he wouldn’t be home,” Burnaldi testified during Anderson’s April bond hearing. “They would have to call him. Michael does what he wants to do. He leaves the home when he wants to.”
The night of Antwan's murder, Anderson was supposed to be at his father’s Orlando home.
“He wasn’t even supposed to be in the Ocoee area,” Calhoun said. “He had a curfew of 10 o’clock. I just don’t understand how if he was already in trouble and already on this community supervision, why wasn’t it being enforced?”
The probation officer said she wrote up Anderson for at least one violation, but it is unclear whether any further action was taken.
“It seems like he broke every rule there was,” Calhoun said. “Nobody has tried to offer any explanation. I believe there’s a flaw in that system. We would like an investigation opened on the Juvenile Justice Department. Are they handling these troubled teens the way that they’re supposed to?”
Calhoun said she doesn’t want other families to go through the same loss and heartache.
“They hope to have a life with him in 25 years, and we get none of that,” she said.
Burnaldi continues to work as a juvenile probation officer.
“I loved him very much,” Calhoun said.
News 13 reached out to the Juvenile Justice Department multiple times requesting interviews and information, but we were told that no one would be made available for comment.