J Man Gets New Lawyer To Defend Double Homicide Case In Florida

Murder accused Jahreme ‘JMan’ Shelton, a producer who is a known associate of Dancehall artist Squash, has retained a new lawyer to argue the defense of his murder case in a Florida court.

In court documents filed on February 23, Shelton made a request for ‘substitution of counsel’, whereby his new lawyer will be Rier Jordan, P.A which the court “accepted as the counsel of record”. Shelton’s defense team also filed for ‘discovery’ from the Sheriff’s office – within 15 days – to receive all files associated with the case.

To begin preparing for trial, both sides engage in discovery. This is the formal process of exchanging information between the parties about the witnesses and evidence they ll present at trial. Discovery lets the parties know what evidence may be presented before the trial begins.

Shelton had previously been appointed a public defender, Ana Paulina Guevara, in the Law Office of the Public Defender in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. Shelton also filed an ‘ex parte motion’ to declare himself indigent of all costs associated with the case.

The defense is now authorized to incur costs to take depositions, including court reporter appearance fees and services of process will be done through the sheriff, the ex-parte motion said.

A separate motion will have to be filed for due process costs, and requests for experts, private investigators and transcripts.

Shelton last appeared in court on February 15th for a hearing/status conference where he pleaded not guilty to two charges of second-degree murder/premeditated murder in the United States.

He appeared in the Circuit Court of the 17th Judicial Court for Broward County. Shelton is being held on a no bond hold in relation to the double homicide.

Shelton was held and charged on October 25 after forensic and video evidence allegedly placed him at the crime scene of a double murder. Shelton was identified as investigators allegedly matched his blood to three samples retrieved from the crime scene.

According to the arrest affidavit filed in the Circuit Court of the 17th Judicial Court for Broward County, Florida the men he is accused of killing have been identified as a freelance hitman called Dwayne ‘Muscle Man’ Francis and Jeff ‘FordLawd’ Murray, who are well-known personalities in the Lauderhill community in south Florida. Both victims sustained multiple gunshots to the head and the face.

The shooting was captured on surveillance cameras.

The Lauderhill Police revealed that just after 9 p.m on October 19, 2022, the Lauderhill Police Department responded to 5821 Blueberry Court regarding a shooting. Officers arrived on scene and encountered two adult males suffering from apparent gunshot wounds in the parking lot area. The males were pronounced deceased at the scene.

Witness accounts indicate that other people were involved in the shooting and had fled the scene in a vehicle prior to police arrival.

All of the shots came from the four individuals in the black sedan as the victims had been ambushed and unable to fire a shot to defend themselves, the court documents said.

A black sedan matching the car’s description from the crime scene then dropped off a light-skinned individual wearing the same tight-fitted blue jeans at the HCA Florida Woodmont hospital, approximately six miles away.

The light-skinned individual was admitted in critical condition, officers attempted to identify him via local database fingerprints to no avail, the documents said. The Border Patrol fingerprint scanner later identified this male as Jahreme Shelton.