SENTENCING UPDATE: TWO GANG MEMBERS SENTENCED IN MURDER OF TRANSGENDER WOMAN, ONE STILL ON THE RUN

Wednesday, November 13, 2024

Anyone with Information on the Whereabouts of Davonte Fore Urged to Call 404-298-8132

Decatur, Ga.- Two men have been sentenced to life in prison for their roles in the murder of a transgender woman, but one defendant is still at large after failing to return to court.

Today, DeKalb County Superior Court Judge Nora Polk, who presided over the trial, sentenced JaQuan Brooks, 25, to Life with the Possibility of Parole, plus five years on probation. Davonte Fore, 26, was not present at the sentencing hearing, but Judge Polk sentenced him to Life with the Possibility of Parole, plus 15 years in confinement.

On October 4, jurors found Brooks and Fore guilty of Malice Murder, two counts of Felony Murder, Aggravated Assault, Possession of a Firearm by a Convicted Felon, and Possession of a Firearm during the Commission of a Felony stemming from the shooting death of Skyler Gilmore, 25, on June 4, 2021.

Defendant Fore attended the first two days of his trial last month but has not been seen since October 1. Despite the state's opposition, Defendant Fore was out on bond pending trial. After his conviction, Judge Polk revoked Fore's bond and issued a bench warrant for his arrest. Defendant Fore is now considered a fugitive from justice. Anyone with information on his whereabouts should contact the DeKalb County Sheriff's Office Fugitive Unit at 404-298-8132.

Defendant Brooks was taken into custody immediately after the guilty verdicts.

"While we are proud of the work of our team to secure convictions in this case, we know justice will not truly be served until Davonte Fore is in custody," said District Attorney Sherry Boston. "We encourage anyone with information to come forward."

According to the murder investigation, officers with the DeKalb County Police Department (DKPD) responded just before 2 a.m. to a call about a person shot at an apartment complex in the 1400 block of South Hairston Road in Stone Mountain. When they arrived, they found Gilmore unresponsive in the bedroom of her apartment with a single gunshot wound to the torso. She did not survive her injuries.

The woman who called 911 to report the shooting was on scene and spoke with police. She said she was a friend of Gilmore's and had been on the phone with her just before the shooting. The woman said Gilmore told her she needed to hang up because she was getting a call from the front gate of the apartment complex. Gilmore then called her friend back and said she had been shot. The friend rushed to Gilmore's apartment to try to help and dialed 911.

Gilmore's friend told investigators that Gilmore identified as a transgender woman and was involved in survival sex, a form of prostitution where someone engages in sex in exchange for basic necessities like food or shelter.

Using data from Gilmore's cell phone, investigators were able to identify a phone number that had communicated with her through calls and texts multiple times in the hour before the shooting, including a text where Gilmore sent the recipient the gate code. Investigators linked that phone number to Defendant Fore.

Detectives pulled surveillance video that showed two people inside a white Nissan Rogue entering the apartment complex's gate at 1:39 a.m. The video clearly showed the driver as Defendant Brooks. The passenger, whose face was also visible, was later identified as Defendant Fore.

Through the investigation, detectives learned Defendant Brooks and Defendant Fore were members of a local gang, which ordered them to murder Gilmore after it was discovered she was involved with another member of the gang.

The case, assigned to the Homicide and Gangs Unit, was prosecuted by Senior Assistant District Attorney Eleanor Friedman with assistance from Senior Assistant District Attorney Kelsey Devitto, District Attorney Investigators Curtis Averhart, A. Zachary and Christopher Usiak, and Victim Advocate Millicent Taylor. DeKalb County Police Department Det. Redrick led the initial investigation.