CLEARWATER BEACH, Fla. — A man pleaded guilty to first-degree murder for beating the death of a bicyclist on Clearwater Beach in 2022.
Jermaine Bennett entered a guilty plea on March 22, according to court filings with the Pinellas County Clerk of Court.
Bennett was pled guilty to the beating death of Jeffery Chapman.
Chapman's body was found on the 700 block of Mandalay Avenue just after midnight on Oct. 21, 2022.
Clearwater Police said Bennett beat him with a long metal tool similar to a tire iron. Chapman was found dead at the scene with severe trauma to the upper body.
Bennett was scheduled to have a jury trial in February of 2025, according to court records.
Bennett was sentenced to life in prison with no possibility of parole.
Savonne Morrison, 18, of Land O' Lakes, was also arrested as an alleged accomplice to the crime. Morrison is accused of pushing Chapman from his bike before Bennett beat him.
Morrison remains in jail. His jury trial is scheduled for Jan. 13, 2025, according to court records.
A Hardee County grandmother is on trial this week for leaving her 7-month-old granddaughter in a hot car where the baby died —the second grandchild to die under Tracey Nix's care. ABC Action News I-Team Reporter Kylie McGivern sat down with Kaila Nix just days ahead of her mother's trial for aggravated manslaughter.
