Man killed by Fort Worth singer was loving father to baby daughter, family says
Every day when Cody Davontae Scott left for work, his goal was to make it back home to his daughter and be her dad, his family said.
On Monday afternoon, Scott left his Fort Worth home after talking with his wife about getting her a new car.
“When I got the message that he was shot, my heart instantly sank,” Cody’s wife, Shayla Jordan, told the Star-Telegram on Wednesday.
Day of the shooting
On Monday, Aug. 18, Cody went out at about 1:50 p.m. An hour later, Fort Worth police responded to the 4600 block of East Berry Street to investigate a car crash that occurred after the driver was struck by gunfire, according to a statement released Tuesday. Cody’s gray sedan hit a utility pole after he was shot, and he passed out, a 911 caller reported.
Cody, 32, was taken in critical condition to a John Peter Smith Hospital, where he died Tuesday in the ICU, police said. His cause of death was a gunshot wound to the head, according to the Tarrant County Medical Examiner’s Office.
Christopher Jerome Blanton Jr., 29, a local country singer known by the stage name C’ing Jerome, shot Cody, according to Fort Worth police. Blanton told homicide detectives that he shot at the car because he thought the driver was following him and had a gun.
Fort Worth police say evidence and witness statements contradict Blanton’s account. Police wrote in an arrest warrant affidavit that Blanton left a gas station after Cody did, and that Blanton pulled up next to Cody’s car and opened fire. Two witnesses told police that they didn’t see the shooting victim with a gun that day, the affidavit states.
Blanton was initially arrested on suspicion of aggravated assault with a deadly weapon. He now faces a murder charge, police said. On Thursday, Blanton was released from the Tarrant County Jail. His bond was set at $150,000 on the count of murder.
‘A hard-working, good man’
Jeffery Scott, who already had grandsons, became a grandfather to a granddaughter for the first time, when Cody’s daughter was born, which he said was very special.
For the last six months, Cody had been sending him pictures of baby Chloe.
“The joy between them is what I’ve been enjoying,” Jeffery told the Star-Telegram. “I’m not gonna get to enjoy that moment (again.)”
Jeffery and his son ran a trucking business together. He said Cody was “a hard-working, good man who was crazy about his mother and sister.”
His daughter, Chloe, “won’t get to know him,” Jeffery said. “I’m gonna have to try to continue the legacy of him — the type of good man and good father he is.”
Cody’s wife and father said they don’t know Blanton. “He (Cody) was trying to avoid the trouble, and the guy just ran up on him, just shot him down like a wild dog or something,” Jeffery said.
“These kids need to realize this is not a TV show — when you take these actions, it changes everybody’s lives,” he said. “There’s no rewinding or pausing like a 30-second video — once it’s done, it’s done.”
Jeffrey said he is going to miss his son’s smile and joking around.
Daughter will grow up without her father
Jordan said her husband was a good man who had no problem helping others. “Anytime I call, he comes, no matter where he is,” she said.
When Jordan shared her pregnancy news with Cody, he was shocked at first but very happy to have his first child, she said.
Jordan described him as a provider who was loving and always supportive.
Cody called his daughter the “love of his life,” Jordan said.
“We were actually in the process of planning her first birthday party. But you know, we can’t plan it together, because he’s no longer here.” she said. “All we have left now is just pictures and videos —she will always know her dad by only the pictures and videos we have of him.”
Jordan said she is used to him being there every step of the way. Trying to live without him is going to be a “big change,” she said.
“At this point of my life, I feel like it’s at a standstill,” she said. “I haven’t eaten in about three days, but I still have a baby so I have to try to get up and take it one day at a time.”
“I guess I feel like it was very, very senseless,” she said. “It was for no reason. Now, a child has to grow up without her father, over like nothing.”
This story was originally published August 20, 2025 at 8:38 PM.