Darrius Elighah Winard Kirkland was arrested on attempted second-degree murder with a weapon, child abuse and firearm-possession charges after a shootout at about 5 p.m. on Friday during a child custody exchange in Oakleaf Plantation last month.
A Custody Handoff Turns Into a Firefight
The shooting unfolded September 18 on Bayridge Court, when Kirkland accompanied his girlfriend to a scheduled custody exchange with her estranged husband, according to the Clay County Sheriff's Office. He opened fire with an AR-style rifle, and the father returned fire during the exchange before retreating into nearby yards. Before arriving at the scene, Kirkland had armed himself with both the rifle and a semiautomatic handgun despite a prior felony conviction that legally barred him from possessing firearms, according to Action News Jax.
No one was struck by gunfire, and the mother got both children to safety. The father later returned to the scene to surrender to responding deputies, per Clay Today. Bullets struck the father's vehicle and nearby homes during the exchange of gunfire.
The danger extended well beyond the two armed men. Stray bullets hit several houses along the residential street, including one home twice while an eight-year-old child was inside, according to the same News4JAX account cited above. Oakleaf Plantation is a master-planned community of roughly 32,070 residents with an 81.6% homeownership rate, according to Data USA. The evening gunfire put children and homeowners directly in the line of fire.
Crash, Fire and Capture
After the shooting, Kirkland fled in his girlfriend's vehicle and crashed into a tree on Piedmont Manor Drive. He then attempted to hide in a neighbor's yard, but a sheriff's office K-9 team tracked him down after the vehicle caught fire, the same Clay Today report states. Kirkland was treated for injuries before his arrest.
Florida's Felon-in-Possession Law
Possession of a firearm by a convicted felon is a second-degree felony punishable by up to 15 years in prison and a $10,000 fine, and actual physical possession triggers a mandatory minimum three-year sentence under Florida's 10-20-Life law, according to the law firm of Richard Hornsby.
The statute itself has drawn legal scrutiny elsewhere in the state. In a 2026 appellate case, Morgan v. State, the Florida Attorney General's Office acknowledged ongoing legal challenges over whether categorical firearm bans on nonviolent felons violate constitutional rights, though the statute remains fully enforced statewide, according to the Brancato Law Firm.
Options for Safer Custody Exchanges
News4JAX consulted forensic psychologist Justin D'Arienzo about the shooting. Options for custody exchanges include neutral monitored locations or school-based drop-offs and pick-ups.
Hoodline previously reported deputies responding to Bayridge Court on Thursday, before the custody-exchange shooting on Friday, September 18, 2026. The incident follows other recent gunfire in the area, including a May shooting involving a deputy near Oakleaf's Silver Bluff.
