Repeat Offender Charged In Drive-By Shooting In Clearwater

CLEARWATER, FL — A 19-year-old man has been charged with first-degree murder and three counts of attempted first-degree murder in a drive-by shooting March 8 in Clearwater.

Derriontae Ward was arrested Wednesday night at the home of a relative in Largo.

The shooting occurred at 9:30 p.m. in the southbound lanes of the U.S. 19 access road just north of Drew Street.

A Nissan Altima pulled alongside another car and an occupant of the car fired more than a dozen bullets into the other car before fleeing the scene.

One of the occupants of the other car, Ivon Cobbs, 18, died after being flown to St. Joseph's Hospital in Tampa.

Another occupant, Marshae Walton, 31, is in critical condition at Bayfront Health St. Petersburg.

Two others inside the car, Yvonne Sanders, 24, and Evers Maxie , 24, also were shot. Sanders is in serious condition while Maxie is in stable condition at Bayfront Health.

At the time of the shooting, detectives said Ward, who has been arrested 37 times, was out on bond from multiple previous criminal cases, including aggravated assault with a firearm, grand theft auto, burglary and leaving the scene of a crash with injury.

Ward was wearing a GPS-enabled ankle device that showed he was at the same restaurant as the victims before the shooting. The device also placed him at the scene of the crime. Ward cut off the ankle device the day after the shooting.

"You often hear about initiatives to reduce sentences for people who have chosen a life of criminality. There is no doubt that a criminal like Ward is the beneficiary of those initiatives and the safety of the general public is sacrificed," said Clearwater Police Chief Dan Slaughter. "The recent increase in gun violence is directly related to Ward and a small band of criminals. There will be more arrests, but what we hope to see are consequences in the form of incarceration
for the safety of the public."

See related story: 1 Dead, 3 Injured In Drive-By Shooting In Clearwater