Ladarius Clardy: Shooting, Convictions, and the Clardy Act

Ladarius Clardy was an 18-year-old quarterback from Pensacola, Florida, shot and killed on July 1, 2021, in a mistaken-identity drive-by shooting that put more than 50 rounds into his car. Two brothers were convicted of his murder. One conviction still stands. The other was thrown out in 2025 after an appeals court found police had ignored the defendant’s requests for a lawyer, and prosecutors then dropped the charges entirely.

Who Ladarius Clardy Was

Clardy played quarterback at Pine Forest High School in Pensacola, where he finished as the school’s all-time leading passer with nearly 6,000 passing yards and more than 2,000 rushing yards. He led the Eagles to back-to-back second-round appearances in the FHSAA state playoffs and graduated in 2020 with a 3.8 GPA.¹

He signed with Kennesaw State in 2019 and joined the football program for the 2020–2021 season. Listed as a sophomore on the 2021 roster, he had played in two games during the spring 2021 season as a backup quarterback.² He was home in Pensacola for the summer when he was killed.

The Shooting

On the night of July 1, 2021, Clardy and 19-year-old Eric Young attended a dice game in Pensacola. Investigators later concluded the two were spotted there by suspects who mistook Clardy for someone they believed had placed a “hit” on them.³

As Clardy and Young drove away, two vehicles followed. Occupants of both cars opened fire near Fairfield Drive and Hollywood Avenue, discharging more than 50 rounds into Clardy’s vehicle.⁴ The car was found in a ravine. Clardy had been struck 14 times and was dead.⁵

Young survived but was severely injured. He was shot in the face, three times in his side and abdomen, and in the spine. The facial wound left him unable to eat or swallow, and he depended on a feeding tube for 10 months.⁶ At trial he testified he passed out during the attack, awoke to find Clardy dead in the driver’s seat, and never saw the shooters.⁷

The Five Men Arrested

Investigators arrested five men in the fall of 2021:

Da’Quavion Ke’Amos Snowden Jr., 21, arrested September 30, 2021, charged as a principal to first-degree murder and with conspiracy.
Amos Dehontiquan Snowden Jr., 20, arrested the same day on the same charges.
Kobie Jenkins Jr., 21, arrested October 15, 2021, charged with first-degree murder, conspiracy, weapon offenses, and robbery.
Timothy Knight Jr., 20, and Terrell Taquez Parker, 23, both arrested October 22, 2021, and charged with principal first-degree murder, conspiracy, and attempted murder.⁸

In February 2023, the State Attorney’s Office dropped charges against Jenkins, Knight, and Parker, citing insufficient evidence to meet the reasonable-doubt standard. Prosecutors said charges against Knight and Parker could be refiled if admissible evidence developed.⁹ Only the two Snowden brothers went to trial.

Amos Snowden’s Conviction and Appeal

Amos Snowden was tried separately. On January 10, 2024, a jury found him guilty of first-degree premeditated murder of Clardy and attempted first-degree premeditated murder of Young. The court imposed a mandatory life sentence.¹⁰

He appealed, arguing that admission of a co-defendant’s out-of-court statement violated his rights under Bruton v. United States. On June 4, 2025, the First District Court of Appeal rejected the claim, holding that the statement did not implicate Snowden in any crime and that he had shown no error. His convictions and life sentence were affirmed.¹¹ He remains in prison.

Da’Quavion Snowden’s Conviction, Reversal, and Release

Da’Quavion Snowden went to trial first, in July 2023 in Escambia County Circuit Court before Judge John Simon. Prosecutors called the shooting a “hit job” in which neither Clardy nor Young was the intended target. The jury convicted him of first-degree premeditated murder and attempted first-degree premeditated murder, and he was sentenced to life without parole.³

A central piece of evidence against him had been a recorded police interrogation in which he admitted to driving one of the vehicles. Before trial, his attorneys had moved to suppress those statements, arguing his constitutional rights had been violated during the 2021 questioning. Judge Simon denied the motion, ruling that Snowden’s requests for a lawyer had been equivocal and that he had waived his rights.¹²

The First District Court of Appeal saw the interrogation differently. In a ruling issued July 2, 2025, it reversed both convictions and ordered a new trial.¹³ The court identified three unequivocal requests for a lawyer that investigators had ignored:

When told he was being moved, Snowden asked if there was any way he could talk to his lawyer. The court called this unequivocal despite the filler phrase “or anything” at the end.
He then said he needed a lawyer because he did not know what to tell investigators. The court noted investigators acknowledged the request but did not honor it.
He said plainly that he needed a lawyer. Investigators left briefly, then returned to tell him he would be charged as a principal and suggested that talking could produce “mitigating factors.”¹³

The court found Snowden had been held for 13 hours and subjected to what it called “relentless pressure” and “improper coercive tactics.” His eventual decision to talk was not a voluntary waiver, the court held, and re-reading Miranda warnings could not cure the earlier failure to honor his request for counsel. All statements from the interrogation were ruled inadmissible.¹³

On October 8, 2025, the appellate court denied the state’s motion for rehearing.¹⁴ Snowden was moved from state prison back to the Escambia County Jail on October 29, 2025, to await retrial.³ Without the interrogation, prosecutors concluded they could not prove the case beyond a reasonable doubt. On December 6, 2025, the state dropped all charges, and Snowden was released that afternoon.¹⁵

The Ladarius Clardy Act

Escambia County Sheriff Chip Simmons pushed for a state law increasing penalties for drive-by shootings after Clardy’s death. The resulting proposal, the Ladarius Clardy Act (SB 1050 / HB 807), was filed in the 2024 Florida legislative session. It would have made the knowing and willful discharge of a firearm from a vehicle within 1,000 feet of any person a second-degree felony, punishable by up to 15 years in prison and subject to potential enhancement under Florida’s 10-20-Life sentencing statute.¹

Sen. Bryan Avila sponsored the Senate version. Reps. Berny Jacques and Carolina Amesty sponsored the House version, with Pensacola Rep. Michelle Salzman as a co-sponsor. Both bills died in their respective criminal justice committees when the 2024 session ended on March 8, 2024.¹⁶

Where the Case Stands

Amos Snowden is serving a mandatory life sentence, his convictions affirmed in June 2025.¹¹ Da’Quavion Snowden was released in December 2025 after prosecutors dropped all charges.¹⁷ Charges against Jenkins, Knight, and Parker remain dropped, though the state has said it could refile against Knight and Parker if admissible evidence surfaces. No additional arrests have been publicly reported.

Kennesaw State established the Ladarius “LD” Clardy Memorial Impact Award, given annually to a football player recognized as worthy of wearing Clardy’s number 13. His parents, LaDaron Clardy and Tracey Marshall, founded the Ladarius Clardy Scholarship Foundation, a 501(c)(3) that awards college scholarships in his name.¹⁸

1
Pensacola News Journal. Pensacola’s Ladarius Clardy Center of Florida Drive-By Shooting Bill
2
Kennesaw State Owls. Ladarius Clardy Roster Page
3
Pensacola News Journal. Snowden Ladarius Clardy Murder Retrial Pensacola
4
WKRG. Snowden Found Guilty in the Murder of Ladarius Clardy
5
WEAR TV. Conviction Overturned for Pensacola Man Found Guilty of Ladarius Clardy’s Murder
6
NBC 15. Surviving Victim in Clardy Shooting Testifies; Fights Break Out at Trial
7
Pensacola News Journal. Ladarius Clardy Family, Da’Quavion Snowden Family Fight During Court
8
Pensacola News Journal. Ladarius Clardy Shooting Suspects Arrested
9
NorthEscambia.com. Charges Dropped Against Three Accused of Ladarius Clardy Murder
10
NorthEscambia.com. Second Suspect Found Guilty of Ladarius Clardy Murder
11
FindLaw. Snowden v. State, No. 1D2024-0359
12
Pensacola News Journal. Sixth Amendment Violation Leads to Snowden Retrial in Pensacola
13
FindLaw. Snowden v. State, No. 1D2023-1998
14
Pensacola News Journal. Ladarius Clardy Da’Quavion Snowden Case Needs Retrial
15
NorthEscambia.com. Charges Dropped Against Man Previously Convicted in Ladarius Clardy Murder
16
Pensacola News Journal. Pensacola Ladarius Clardy Bill Fails as 2024 Legislative Session Ends
17
WEAR TV. Charges Dropped Against Pensacola Man Convicted in Ladarius Clardy’s Murder
18
Kennesaw State Owls. Ladarius Clardy Memorial Impact Award