Shooting’s death toll rises as 8-year-old dies
Man accused in Sanford violence spree is held without bond
The last time Jamelia Jarrells saw Branden Christian was just before spring break.
Branden was excited to go to the pool and hang out with friends. Jarrells, an assistant teacher at an after-school program at Hamilton Elementary School in Sanford where 8-year-old Branden attended, was looking forward to hearing all about his spring break.
Instead, Branden was fighting for his life after police say he was shot by his mother’s boyfriend, who stormed into the family home on Monday morning, firing an AK-47 assault rifle. On Tuesday, Branden died from his injuries.
His mother, Latina Herring, 35, was shot and killed, and his 7-year-old brother Brendon Christian, and their grandfather, Bertis Gerard Herring, were also shot and are in critical condition.
Herring’s boyfriend, Allen Dion
Cashe, 31, is charged with first-degree murder, attempted murder, possession of a weapon by a convicted felon and violation of probation, jail records show. He is being held on no bond at the Sanford County Jail after police say he confessed to firing an entire magazine from the assault rifle into Latina Herring’s home.
Jarrells described Branden as an intelligent young man who was good at math and enjoyed playing with numbers. He was always the first in the class to finish his homework and was quick to help others, she said.
“Every time I saw him, no matter what was going on, whether the class was in an uproar, whether they were laughing, whether they were playing, whether it was raining outside, whether the sun was shining, he was always smiling,” she said. “His smile just lit up a room. That’s what I will most remember him by.”
According to Cashe’s arrest report, he told detectives the confrontation started early Monday morning at a Wawa when she took the keys to his car.
He was still angry three hours later when he kicked his way into Herring’s home on Hays Drive at 6:20 a.m. Monday with the AK-47 and walked toward Herring’s bedroom, firing. Herring was hit seven times either while still in bed or while trying to get out of it, according to the report.
The boys were shot while they slept on a couch, according to the report. Cashe told police their shootings were an accident, that it happened after he fell down, but Officer Jason Bowen wrote that because of the trajectory of the bullets, Cashe had to have been standing directly over them. The two were hit by three bullets, according to the report.
Their grandfather was shot about five times in his bedroom, after police say Cashe thought Bertis Herrring “may have been coming after him.”
Cashe took off in a car with a flat tire before he ran away from a police officer, the AK-47 in hand.
But his shooting spree was not complete, police said.
During his attempted escape, he shot two bystanders.
Winter Springs High School student, Rakeya Jackson, 18, was shot in the stomach and 43-year-old Lazaro Paredesquelite, was hit by three bullets across the street from Jackson. They are both in stable condition, according to Sanford police.
Cashe told police he shot Paredesquelite because the man was “looking at him.”
“Allen Dion Cashe stated he never wanted it to go this far and never wanted anyone to get hurt,” according to the report.
Cashe, who has a long and violent criminal history, had little to say at his first appearance Tuesday afternoon, during which a judge ordered him held without bond.
“Nothing to talk about,” he said to Senior Judge Nancy Alley.
Family and friends stood outside Herring’s home on Tuesday, with sympathy balloons hanging from a mailbox. They declined comment.
Seminole County Public Schools Superintendent Walt Griffin said grief counselors would be available at Hamilton Elementary School for students, staff and faculty to deal with the loss.
“There are no words to describe the tragic loss of a young and innocent life taken so soon,” he said.
Jarrells said Brendon Christian is also a good kid, who enjoys playing with others.
She had the difficult task Tuesday of talking to Branden’s classmates about why he is no longer with them.
“Death has never been easy to talk about,” she said. “He was a really good kid, just fun-loving. He will be missed.”
“There are no words to describe the tragic loss of a young and innocent life taken so soon.” Seminole County Public Schools Superintendent Walt Griffin