The Murder of Colby Vinson Over a Custody Dispute

The Colby Vinson murder was a contract-style killing carried out on March 19, 2023, in Navarre, Florida, six days after a judge granted the 24-year-old father 50 percent custody of his four-year-old daughter. The child’s mother, Rachiel Moore, recruited her former stepfather, Jason Curtis, to drive from Alabama and shoot Vinson outside his apartment. Both were convicted of first-degree premeditated murder and sentenced to life in prison.

The Custody Ruling That Set It in Motion

Vinson had gone about a year without custody of his daughter. On March 13, 2023, a judge ruled in his favor and granted him shared custody.¹ According to arrest reports, Moore was “distraught” over the decision and contacted Curtis the same day.²

On March 19, Vinson picked his daughter up at a Publix parking lot in Navarre. It was the first time in a year he had her. He drove her back to his apartment.

The Shooting

Curtis, then 55 and living in Cullman, Alabama, drove roughly five hours to Navarre and waited outside the apartment. As Vinson unloaded groceries with his daughter nearby, Curtis shot him once in the face with a .38-caliber Ruger.¹ Santa Rosa County sheriff’s deputies arrived to find the four-year-old sitting next to her father’s body. She was physically unharmed.³

About 30 minutes after the shooting, Curtis called Moore and told her she had “nothing to worry about,” according to arrest reports.²

How Prosecutors Proved the Plan

The case against Moore and Curtis rested on their communications in the week before the killing. On March 12, 2023, Moore texted Curtis about the custody situation. The conversation turned to what Curtis called “hunting” Vinson. Curtis responded, “Not much hunting. I have an address,” and sent Moore a photo of guns, knives, and a sword with the message, “Take your pick.”⁴

Moore gave Curtis gas money for the drive from Alabama and passed along detailed information he needed to identify and locate Vinson.³ When investigators searched Curtis’s vehicle, they found a firearm and a handwritten note listing Vinson’s physical description, his home and work addresses, and details about his vehicle.⁵

Convictions and Sentences

Sheriff Bob Johnson announced the arrests on March 27, 2023. Curtis was charged with murder. Moore was initially charged with accessory to murder and tampering with evidence and held on $200,000 bond at the Santa Rosa County Jail.⁶

Curtis went to trial first. On May 2, 2024, a Santa Rosa Circuit Court jury convicted him of first-degree premeditated murder, a capital felony. Circuit Judge Clifton Drake sentenced him to life in prison.¹

Moore’s case followed nearly a year later. Prosecutors argued she was the architect of the killing and presented the text messages, the handwritten note from Curtis’s vehicle, and evidence that she had supplied the money and information he needed. On April 24, 2025, the jury found her guilty of first-degree premeditated murder as a principal and of tampering with evidence. Judge Drake immediately sentenced her to life in a Florida state prison without the possibility of parole.⁷

The Third Defendant

Rachiel’s mother, Christina Moore, who is also Curtis’s ex-wife, was charged with accessory after the fact of a capital felony and tampering with evidence for allegedly helping the two after the killing.¹ On July 28, 2025, the Office of the State Attorney dropped those charges. Supervising Assistant State Attorney Greg Marcille said “recently discovered evidence” made it “essentially impossible” to prove the case beyond a reasonable doubt. Officials declined to describe that evidence.⁸

Where the Defendants Are Now

Curtis is serving his life sentence at Gulf Correctional Institution in Wewahitchka, Florida. Rachiel Moore is serving her life-without-parole sentence at Lowell Correctional Institution in Ocala. No appeals from either defendant have been reported in public records as of late 2025.⁸

1
Pensacola News Journal. Navarre: Colby Vinson’s Killer Gets Life Over Fatal Custody Dispute
2
WEAR-TV. Navarre Shooting Victim Had Just Regained Partial Custody of His 4-Year-Old Daughter
3
FOX 10 TV. Navarre Woman Gets Life Sentence in Connection With Shooting Death of Her Daughter’s Father
4
Pensacola News Journal. Christina Moore, Colby Vinson, Jason Curtis, Rachiel Moore Murder Case
5
True Crime News. Florida Santa Rosa: Rachiel Moore Guilty of Murder of Child’s Father, Sentenced
6
WEAR-TV. Sheriff: Ex-Stepfather Killed Navarre Man With 4-Year-Old Child Next to Him
7
Pensacola News Journal. Rachiel Moore Guilty of Killing Colby Vinson in Santa Rosa Over Daughter
8
Pensacola News Journal. Christina Moore of Navarre Has Charges Dropped in Colby Vinson Murder