MELBOURNE, Fla. — Police in Melbourne are continuing to looking into a shooting death that happened Sunday in downtown.
Stephan Dieujuste, 19, has been charged with manslaughter in the death of 19-year-old Nathaniel Jennings, and remains in the Brevard County Jail in lieu of a $100,000 bond.
According to investigators, the shooting took place during an altercation just before 2 a.m. Sunday morning in a public parking lot on Vernon Place near New Haven Avenue.
“From what we’ve gathered there was some sort of interaction on the street, a conversation of some sort, that turned into a disagreement,” said Melbourne Police Cmdr. Shawn Eising.
He said four additional officers were on patrol, heard the shots and got to the scene within seconds.
“It was an oddity that someone would be so brazen to act when they knew there was such a presence in the area,” Eising said.
Police have been poring over businesses’ camera footage of the incident, and their own cameras positioned on the street.
Investigators say is has taken extra time to get the video due to businesses being closed Sunday for Mother’s Day.
A nearby business owner said she was upset by Sunday morning’s violence, but wanted to reassure people that downtown is safe during the day.
After spending 20 years on the road selling her wares at shows and fairs, Angie Clark decided to open a storefront in Melbourne.
“When I moved down here, I decided this was a good location,” she said. “It felt good.”
Her shop, Essential Elements Wellness, has been open on New Haven Avenue in downtown Melbourne for six years.
She said the daytime traffic in the area is very different from the after-hours crowd.
“We see a lot of families, we see a lot of tourists, local people who come to shop or they have their regular favorite stores to go to,” Clark said of the daytime hours. “The bar scene is completely different — different demographic, different feel, the energy changes at night.”
The football team at Jennings’ alma mater, Heritage High School, posted on social media about the teen, saying “even though he is gone he will never be forgotten.” And the athletic department at his college, West Liberty University, posted on social media that they are “mourning the tragic loss of student-athlete Nate Jennings.”
Melbourne police say it’s possible the State Attorney’s Office could upgrade Dieujuste’s charge to murder.