Jury reaches verdict in trial of Tampa father accused of shooting his 2 kids, killing 1

TAMPA, Fla. — A man accused of shooting his two children in 2022, resulting in the death of his 5-year-old daughter, Jayla, and injuries to his 8-year-old son, JJ, has been found guilty on all counts.

A jury found Jermaine Bass guilty of first-degree murder, attempted murder and aggravated child abuse.

Sentencing, which is expected to include victim impact statements, is set for 9 a.m. Monday at the Hillsborough County Courthouse.

On Wednesday, the state rested its case. The defense did so as well without calling a single witness. 

The jury never heard from Jermaine Bass’s wife Shirley, nor the couple’s son JJ, who survived the shooting. 

Bass himself also chose not to testify.

In their closing arguments, defense attorneys for Jermaine Bass kept up their strategy of undermining the prosecution’s case, suggesting there was no evidence directly linking Bass to the gun and insinuating someone else could have pulled the trigger. 

But prosecutors laid out a roadmap of surveillance cameras, cell phone tower records, ballistics and DNA. Perhaps most important was Jermaine Bass’s own words originally telling deputies when they arrived that he had shot his children accidentally.

 In their closing arguments, prosecutors told the jury they had proven it was not an accident. 

“You know who tells you who shot that gun? He tells you who shot that gun. Jermaine Bass tells you who shot that gun. He said I did it,” said prosecutor John Terry. 

Bass’s defense lawyer, Carolyn Schlemmer, attacked the credibility of witnesses and pointed to potential evidence which was never tested. 

“We don’t know where that gun came from. How it got into the kids’ room. Who shot it. Who is Mr. Bass protecting? We don’t have any evidence. None,” she said. 

You can watch extended coverage of the trial on our free 10 Tampa Bay+ streaming platform, available on Roku, Amazon Fire and Apple TV.