Staff Report

NEWBERRY, Fla. – A young man is in custody following a disturbing series of events that led to his arrest on charges of attempted homicide. Jayce Benjamin Timmons, 22, was taken into custody early this morning after he allegedly assaulted a woman in Newberry.

The incident unfolded around 2:16 a.m. on December 20, when an Alachua County Sheriff’s Deputy was dispatched to Vanguard Apartments. Upon arrival, the deputy reported hearing a faint plea for help. Moments later, a woman, visibly distressed and covered in blood, emerged from an apartment, crying out for assistance before collapsing to the ground. The deputy observed that the woman was limping and bore extensive bruising and scratches. She recounted fading in and out of consciousness during the ordeal.

Inside the apartment, the deputy encountered Timmons standing in the hallway. He reportedly had bloodstains on his pants and shoes, but appeared uninjured.

According to the victim, the trouble began the previous night at a restaurant where Timmons allegedly punched her. She decided to leave and returned home alone, but Timmons followed her. He reportedly gained access to her apartment using a key he had taken without her permission. Once inside, he allegedly broke her car key, effectively trapping her by preventing her from using her vehicle to escape.

She said she and Timmons argued, and then he started hitting and kicking her. She said Timmons said he didn’t care if she died, and at another point, he said he was going to kill her.

The victim said Timmons stopped hitting her when the deputy rang the doorbell and said, “Oh, look, they came to save you; now I’m going to go to prison.” The victim said she was sure that Timmons intended to kill her, and she believed he would have succeeded if the deputy had not arrived. She said she scratched Timmons so he could be identified by the skin under her nails if he killed her.

Post Miranda, Timmons reportedly said the victim was acting crazy when he arrived at the apartment. He said he didn’t know where the blood on his pants and shoes came from, and he didn’t know how the victim and apartment came to be covered in blood.

Timmons has been charged with attempted homicide (committing a felony that could lead to death), hindering a victim’s communication with law enforcement, false imprisonment, and misdemeanor property damage (for breaking the car key). His full criminal history is unavailable, but he is on pre-trial release for a hit and run crash in Hillsborough County and is facing an Alachua County charge of driving without a valid license. A sworn complaint for domestic battery was filed against him in September 2025, but the charge was later dropped. Judge Julie Johnson ordered him held without bail pending a hearing on a motion from the State Attorney’s office to hold him without bail until trial; if the judge denies the motion, bail will be set at that hearing.

Articles about arrests are based on reports from law enforcement agencies. The charges listed are taken from the arrest report and/or court records and are only accusations. All suspects are innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.