{"id":128914,"date":"2026-01-23T09:10:26","date_gmt":"2026-01-23T09:10:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/128914\/"},"modified":"2026-01-23T09:10:26","modified_gmt":"2026-01-23T09:10:26","slug":"mother-speaks-out-after-jury-convicts-man-in-2023-killing-of-her-19-year-old-son","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/128914\/","title":{"rendered":"Mother speaks out after jury convicts man in 2023 killing of her 19-year-old son"},"content":{"rendered":"

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. \u2013 Mikyh White was a funny, intelligent and deeply loyal young man with big dreams and an even bigger heart, his mother, Taylor White, told News4JAX.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe loved his family. He loved hard,\u201d Taylor said. \u201cHe had a smile that could brighten up any room.\u201d<\/p>\n

But that bright light was snuffed out at just 19 years old when Mikyh was shot and killed<\/a> in the Fairfax neighborhood.<\/p>\n

Taylor remembers her son leaving home the morning of Sept. 9, 2023, to go to a music studio with friends.<\/p>\n

\u201cI remember yelling, \u2018I love you too, son. See you later,\u2019\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

It was the last time she would see him alive.<\/p>\n

Later that afternoon, Taylor returned home to find police tape blocking her street. Believing her son was still at the studio, she tried calling him to let him know not to come home. <\/p>\n

He never answered.<\/p>\n

\u201cI had no idea (investigators) already had his phone,\u201d Taylor said.<\/p>\n

Mikyh had been found shot and lying in the road on Melrose Avenue just after 2 p.m. that day, according to the Jacksonville Sheriff\u2019s Office. He was taken to a hospital, where he died. <\/p>\n

Investigators said the accused shooter, Kenneth James Jr.<\/a>, pulled Mikyh from his car, left his body on the street, drove to Jacksonville Beach, dumped the vehicle, threw the gun into the ocean and took an Uber home.<\/p>\n

Mugshot of Kenneth James, taken in 2023. (Copyright 2025 by WJXT News4JAX – All rights reserved.)<\/p>\n

A few days later, a surfer found the firearm in the water and called police. Prosecutors said phone data, surveillance video, DNA evidence and witness testimony linked James to the killing.<\/p>\n

James, who was initially charged with second-degree murder, was later indicted by a grand jury on a first-degree murder charge.<\/p>\n

Taylor said hearing evidence during the trial \u2014 including testimony detailing the final moments of her son\u2019s life \u2014 was overwhelming. She often had to step out of the courtroom to protect her mental health.<\/p>\n

\u201cAs a mother, there are just things you can\u2019t unhear,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

Following the four-day trial, jurors deliberated for less than 45 minutes before finding James guilty of killing Mikyh.<\/p>\n

\u201cThat verdict gave us peace,\u201d Taylor said. \u201cFor the first time, it felt like we could breathe.\u201d<\/p>\n

Taylor White shares her grief after her son’s killer was convicted. (Victor Rodriguez\/News4JAX photographer)<\/p>\n

James now faces a mandatory life sentence and is expected to be sentenced within the next two weeks.<\/p>\n

Taylor said she is committed to ensuring Mikyh\u2019s name and legacy are never forgotten. She said her bond with her son only grew stronger as he entered young adulthood.<\/p>\n

He trusted her, sought her advice and shared his goals openly \u2014 from real estate investing to stock trading to launching his own clothing line.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe would tell me, \u2018Ma, I\u2019m gonna make us millionaires,\u2019\u201d she said. \u201cAnd I believed him.\u201d<\/p>\n

While Mikyh\u2019s ambitions were sadly cut short, Taylor said she plans to bring the clothing line he dreamed about to life this year,<\/p>\n

She is also launching an organization in her son\u2019s honor called MIKYH \u2014 an acronym for My Intelligent, Kind Young Heart.<\/p>\n

\u201cHis life mattered,\u201d Taylor White said. \u201cAnd I will make sure people know who Mikyh White was.\u201d<\/p>\n

Copyright 2026 by WJXT News4JAX – All rights reserved.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"JACKSONVILLE, Fla. \u2013 Mikyh White was a funny, intelligent and deeply loyal young man with big dreams and…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":128915,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[8],"tags":[265,116,118,117],"class_list":["post-128914","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-jacksonville","tag-crime","tag-jacksonville","tag-jacksonville-headlines","tag-jacksonville-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/128914","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=128914"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/128914\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/128915"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=128914"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=128914"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=128914"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}