BUNNELL, Fla. — A man has been sentenced to life in prison after being found guilty of killing an “innocent bystander” in a 2022 drive-by shooting in Bunnell, the State Attorney’s Office Seventh Judicial Circuit announced Friday in a press release.

Following a three-day trial, 26-year-old Stephen Monroe was found guilty of first-degree murder by a Flagler County jury for the shooting death of 16-year-old Noah Smith, according to the release; the shooting happened in the evening of Jan. 12, 2022.

On the day of the incident, Monroe, who was 23 years old at the time, was a passenger in a vehicle with two other men, the release stated. Devandre Williams, was the driver of the vehicle, while Tyrese Patterson was the other passenger in the vehicle.

When Williams stopped at the intersection of South Anderson and East Boee streets in Bunnell, Patterson got into an argument with a man named Terrell Sampson, who was outside the vehicle, according to the release.

“When Williams started to drive away, Sampson shot at the vehicle,” the release stated. “Williams intentionally returned and slowly proceeded through the intersection while Monroe and Patterson fired several rounds back.”

As a result, the release says that Smith was shot in the hip, as he later died from his injuries at a local hospital.

“I met some of Noah’s family shortly after this tragedy occurred,” State Attorney R.J. Larizza said in the release. “I am grateful we were able to hold the individuals responsible for his death accountable. We are relentless in our quest to rid our communities of those who engage in gun violence. They deserve nothing less.”

The release stated that Williams and Patterson were also charged in Smith’s killing; Williams pleaded guilty to second-degree murder in 2024, and was sentenced to 55 years, while Patterson pleaded guilty to second-degree murder as well, and is facing 25 to 50 years in prison.

Patterson will be sentenced on March 26.

The release says Monroe is a “Young Guns defendant.” The title relates to the Seventh Judicial Circuit’s ‘Operation Young Guns,’ an operation Larizza launched in May 2022 to address “the increase in violent gun crime among juveniles and young adults.”