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Police: Man's rage finds victim
By JAMIE JONES and BRADY DENNIS DADE CITY -- All David Wayne Williamson wanted was a ride home. Instead, he died early Wednesday, shot to death in cold blood along a dark highway north of Dade City. "It appears to be a classic case of being in the wrong place at the wrong time," said Pasco County sheriff's spokesman Jon Powers. Investigators say Williamson, 35, was the unsuspecting victim of a Brooksville man who kidnapped his ex-girlfriend earlier that night and was hellbent on terrorizing her. Luckie Jermaine Barnes, 20, of 319 Duke St., was arrested Wednesday evening and charged with first-degree murder. The arrest came through the help of Janelle Sanders, 19, who told deputies she witnessed Barnes shoot Williamson three times, killing him. The killing marked the culmination of a night Sanders spent fearing for her life. According to an affidavit, Sanders got off work about 11 p.m. from United Plastics at the Airport Industrial Park in Brooksville. She found Barnes sitting in the passenger seat of her car with a shotgun. The two had dated for two years and have a child together. But Sanders said she recently broke off the relationship, which upset Barnes. She said that for more than an hour, he ordered her to drive the streets of Brooksville and threatened to kill her. The pair eventually stopped at an Oasis gas station on Broad Street. Barnes ordered Sanders to pump gas while he went inside to pay. Sanders motioned to the clerk to call 911, which he later did, but it was too late. Barnes soon took the wheel and headed south into Pasco County, still threatening Sanders and even hitting her twice in the face, the affidavit states. He drove past the Dade City home of Sanders' current boyfriend and then headed back north. That's when he caught sight of Williamson, hitchhiking outside Rumors nightclub in Lacoochee. "We're going to pick him up and kill him," Barnes told Sanders, according to the affidavit. Williamson got inside the car and asked for a lift to Brooksville. It would turn out to be a short -- and deadly -- ride. The affidavit describes the last conversation Williamson ever would have. Barnes: "You will pay me for this." Williamson: "I only have $5." Barnes: "It's not enough. I'm taking you back where I picked you up." Williamson: "Just drop me off here at the Cumberland Farms store." It was at that store, where U.S. 98 and U.S. 301 split, that Williamson got out of the car and exchanged several words with Barnes, then took off running. Barnes drew his shotgun and shot several times at Williamson, hitting him twice and knocking him to the ground, Sanders told deputies. He then walked over and shot Williamson a third time at close range, killing him, she said. Sanders and Barnes drove back to Brooksville, where she dropped him off, the affidavit states. She was screaming and crying and had urinated on herself when she arrived at a friend's house at 5 a.m. Wednesday, according to an incident report. She was terrified and kept saying that Barnes had just shot a white man in Pasco County, the report says. This is not the the first time Barnes has been in trouble with the law. Police say that Barnes pointed a .45-caliber pistol at a man staying in Brooksville's Sunset Motel in November and stole $400. Authorities arrested Barnes in December, charged him with the robbery and suggested $50,000 bail. On Dec. 21, Hernando County Judge Peyton Hyslop set bail at $4,000. Barnes walked out of jail the next day, a little more than a month before he would meet Williamson, authorities said. He was scheduled to appear in court on March 5 on the robbery charges. Hyslop said Thursday that the State Attorney's Office did not fill out a form asking that Barnes be held without bail until his court date. Hyslop said he thinks Barnes qualified for representation by the public defender, and said state law suggests that bail should not rise above $5,000 for those defendants. Assistant State Attorney Bill Catto said the state did not file a form asking for no bail because the form is not frequently used. He said the state argued against $4,000 bail for Barnes. He said judges elsewhere in Florida likely would have set a higher bail, possibly in the $20,000 range, for a robbery suspect with a prior criminal record. Barnes' record includes convictions for aggravated battery on a police officer, resisting an officer with violence, disturbing the peace and possession of marijuana. Hyslop has long been criticized by state attorneys and police officers for setting what they think are low bails for suspects. "This is a very unfortunate situation that was bound to happen," Catto said. "It's a tragedy." In addition to the murder charge, Barnes faces charges of kidnapping, domestic battery and aggravated assault. Brooksville police still consider Barnes a suspect in several robberies. Brooksville officers arrested Barnes on Wednesday evening at the Coney Island Drive Inn, a restaurant on E Jefferson Street known for its footlong hot dogs. Police Chief Ed Tincher said Barnes had been placing anonymous calls to the department to offer information about the robberies he was suspected of committing. On Wednesday, Barnes called again, and as usual, Detective Rick Hankins recognized his voice. Hankins knew that Pasco authorities were looking for Barnes. He persuaded Barnes that he could not take anonymous tips over the phone and asked for a meeting, Tincher said. Barnes suggested the restaurant. He showed. Officers cuffed him. Barnes remained at the Hernando County Jail on Thursday without bail. Meanwhile, Williamson's family members continued to deal with their loss. "It's good to know they got somebody off the streets who would just shoot someone arbitrarily," said Mike Williamson, David's brother. "But it doesn't relieve the pain much."
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