20-year-old Bunnell resident Devandre Williams was sentenced to spend 55 years in prison for his role in the murders of two 16-year-olds in 2022. He was charged with two counts of second degree murder and one count of attempted second degree murder, for which he entered into a plea deal.
Williams was arrested in June 2022 for the two murders, both of which occurred earlier that year. The sudden influx of juvenile killings rocked the Bunnell community, and the sentencing of Williams brings the victims' families one step closer to closure in the tragic slaying of their sons.
The first incident occurred in January 2022, when 16-year-old Noah Smith was murdered on South Anderson Street in Bunnell. According to the Flagler County Sheriff's Office, Williams was driving a car that approached Smith's location when he was killed in a drive-by shooting. Then, that May, Williams is said to have gunned down 16-year-old Keymarion Hall in a nearby place. The FCSO said at the time that gang violence was in part to blame, but that both Smith and Hall were innocent victims.
Three others were arrested in connection to these killings: Stephen Monroe, Tyrese Patterson, and Terrell Sampson. The sentencing of Patterson is also expected to come soon. Williams was given 55 years each for the two second degree murder charges, plus 30 years for his attempted murder charge. He will be eligible for review at intervals of 15 and 25 years. The sentences are to be served concurrently, meaning they won't be stacked on top of each other.
“This dirtbag will spend a longtime in prison for his crimes,” said Flagler Sheriff Rick Staly of the sentencing. “I had promised the families of Noah and Keymarion that we would hold the killers accountable. While I know this can’t bring back their loved ones, I hope knowing the killers are receiving long prison sentences brings them a feeling of justice. This was a difficult investigation for the Major Crimes Unit. Detectives worked more than 2,500 hours investigating this case.”
