STUART, Fla. — A 19-year-old man faces multiple charges in connection with a triple shooting in Stuart that killed a 73-year-old grandmother who was watching television in her living room on Thanksgiving.
Police said Lonnie Bee Smalls III faces charges of first-degree murder and three counts of attempted first-degree murder.
Since the Thanksgiving Day shooting, Smalls had been jailed but was not formally charged in the shooting until Thursday.
Investigators said Mattie Lou Jones was in her living room watching television when she was struck by a bullet and died. Two other victims survived their gunshot wounds, and a third person, who was next to the victims when they were shot, was not injured.
Police said Smalls used a handgun to shoot numerous rounds at the victims.
He was identified as a suspect an hour and a half after the shooting and arrested on a probation violation charge six hours after the shooting, investigators said.
Smalls was held in jail with no bond following his arrest.
"This arrest brings me some closure, and I hope some closure for the Jones family," Stuart Police Chief Joseph Tumminelli said in a Facebook post. "The Stuart Police Department is continuing with the investigation, and more information will be available in the future. I would like to thank the public for your patience and understanding in this case. Criminals do not have rules, but law enforcement investigators do. I am optimistic that there will be more to follow."
