14-year-old kills friend recording him aiming gun, FL cops say. He’s charged

A 13-year-old was filming his friend aiming a gun when the 14-year-old shot him dead, Florida authorities said.

Investigators initially believed a drive-by shooting claimed the life of 13-year-old Jaden Hill, but the St. Petersburg Police Department said it later learned that’s not what happened.

The 14-year-old boy is now facing a second-degree murder charge. McClatchy News is not identifying him because of his age.

The boys were sitting in a vehicle outside a home in Largo at about 11 p.m. on April 12 and taking videos with a handgun, police said in a news release.

Hill was filming his friend pointing the gun when the 14-year-old shot him, according to police.

First responders said they found Hill in the driveway and rushed him to a hospital, where he died of his injuries.

Police concluded the shots weren’t fired from another vehicle, and they arrested the 14-year-old. A spokesperson for the department declined to say whether the shooting is believed to be accidental, citing the ongoing investigation.

“Detectives are still working to determine where the gun came from and whether it was stolen,” officers wrote.

Hill was about a month away from his 14th birthday.

St. Petersburg is part of the Tampa Bay area.

This story was originally published April 14, 2025 at 2:05 PM with the headline "14-year-old kills friend recording him aiming gun, FL cops say. He’s charged."