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Murder of Seath Jackson

SOLVED2011Summerfield, Florida, United States3 SOURCESUPDATED JUL 2026

Documents violence · crimes against children — written to inform, not to shock.

Illustrative

On April 17, 2011, 15-year-old Seath Tyler Jackson was killed in Summerfield, Florida, after being lured to a friend's house by his ex-girlfriend, Amber Wright, who had told him she wanted to reconcile. Jackson and Wright had dated beginning in December 2010 but broke up by March 2011. Wright then began dating 18-year-old Michael Shane Bargo Jr., who came to believe, incorrectly, that Jackson had abused Wright. In the weeks before the killing, Bargo and Jackson exchanged threats, and Bargo reportedly told Jackson he had "a bullet with your name on it." Bargo organized a plan to kill Jackson with Wright, her 16-year-old brother Kyle Hooper, and their friends Charlie Ely (18) and Justin Soto (20).

On the day of the murder, Jackson was attacked by the group after arriving at Ely's house. He was beaten, struck on the head, and shot while trying to escape; Soto struck him with an axe handle, and he was carried back inside and placed in a bathtub, where Bargo fatally shot him. His body was placed in a sleeping bag and left in a backyard fire pit for hours. The following morning, James Havens, the stepfather of Wright and Hooper, helped dispose of Jackson's remains, which were placed in paint cans and dumped in a water-filled rock quarry in Ocala, Florida. The group also cleaned the house with bleach.

Jackson's mother reported him missing on April 18, 2011, and investigators quickly linked the group to the crime; all six were arrested on April 20, 2011. The five youths were charged with first-degree murder, and Havens was charged as an accessory. Charlie Ely was the first convicted, found guilty on September 23, 2011, and sentenced to life without parole. Justin Soto pleaded guilty on May 30, 2012, and was sentenced to life without parole. Kyle Hooper and Amber Wright were convicted on June 12, 2012, and initially sentenced to life without parole on August 22, 2012, though this conflicted with a U.S. Supreme Court ruling barring mandatory life-without-parole sentences for juveniles. Michael Bargo, the ringleader and shooter, was convicted on August 20, 2013, and sentenced to death on December 13, 2013.

Subsequent appeals altered several outcomes. In 2014, Florida's 5th District Court of Appeal vacated Hooper's sentence for re-sentencing and ordered a re-trial for Wright due to a Miranda rights violation; Wright was re-convicted in January 2016 and re-sentenced in February 2016 to life with parole eligibility after 25 years, and Hooper was similarly re-sentenced in December 2016. Bargo's death sentence was vacated by the Florida Supreme Court in June 2017 due to a change in state law requiring unanimous jury verdicts for death sentences; following a re-sentencing trial, a jury unanimously recommended death again in April 2019, and the sentence was reinstated in September 2019. A further appeal by Bargo was denied in June 2021. Charlie Ely's conviction was vacated in March 2020 on ineffective-counsel grounds; she pleaded guilty to second-degree murder in June 2020 and was released due to time served and good behavior. James Havens, initially found mentally incompetent to stand trial in 2014, pleaded guilty in 2018 to accessory to first-degree murder.

Key facts

Victims
Seath Tyler Jackson
Date
2011
Location
Summerfield, Florida, United States
Case status
solved

Case timeline

  1. 1996-02-03

    Seath Tyler Jackson is born.

  2. 2010-12

    Jackson begins dating Amber Wright.

  3. 2011-03

    Jackson and Wright break up; Wright begins dating Michael Shane Bargo Jr.

  4. 2011-04-17

    Jackson is lured to a house in Summerfield, Florida, attacked, and shot to death; his body is burned in a backyard fire pit.

  5. 2011-04-18

    Jackson's mother reports him missing; James Havens helps dispose of the ashes in a rock quarry in Ocala, Florida.

  6. 2011-04-20

    All six individuals connected to the killing are arrested.

  7. 2011-05-04

    The five youths are formally indicted by a grand jury for first-degree murder.

  8. 2011-07-06

    Prosecution confirms it will seek the death penalty against Bargo.

  9. 2011-09-23

    Charlie Ely is found guilty of first-degree murder.

  10. 2011-10-17

    Ely is sentenced to life without parole.

  11. 2012-05-30

    Justin Soto pleads guilty to first-degree murder and is sentenced to life without parole.

  12. 2012-06-12

    Kyle Hooper and Amber Wright are found guilty of first-degree murder.

  13. 2012-08-22

    Hooper and Wright are sentenced to life without parole.

  14. 2013-08-20

    Michael Bargo is found guilty of first-degree murder.

  15. 2013-08-27

    Jury recommends death sentence for Bargo by a 10-2 vote.

  16. 2013-12-13

    Bargo is sentenced to death.

  17. 2014

    James Havens is ruled mentally incompetent to stand trial.

  18. 2014-05-30

    Florida's 5th District Court of Appeal vacates Hooper's sentence for re-sentencing and orders a re-trial for Wright.

  19. 2016-01-14

    Wright is found guilty again at re-trial for first-degree murder.

  20. 2016-02-23

    Wright is re-sentenced to life with parole eligibility after 25 years.

  21. 2016-12-08

    Hooper is re-sentenced to life with parole eligibility after 25 years.

  22. 2017-06-29

    Florida Supreme Court overturns Bargo's death sentence and orders a re-sentencing trial.

  23. 2018

    James Havens pleads guilty to accessory to first-degree murder.

  24. 2019-04-03

    Bargo's re-sentencing trial begins.

  25. 2019-04-10

    Jury unanimously recommends death sentence for Bargo.

  26. 2019-09-12

    Judge formally reinstates the death penalty for Bargo.

  27. 2020-03

    Charlie Ely's conviction is vacated on ineffective-counsel grounds.

  28. 2020-06-17

    Ely pleads guilty to second-degree murder and is released.

  29. 2021-06-24

    Florida Supreme Court denies Bargo's second appeal against his death sentence.

Best coverage

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People

  • Seath Tyler Jackson

    VICTIM

    15-year-old victim killed on April 17, 2011.

    citation on file

  • Amber Elizabeth Wright

    CONVICTED

    Convicted of first-degree murder; re-tried and re-convicted; sentenced to life with parole eligibility after 25 years.

    citation on file

  • Kyle Lonnie-Duan Hooper

    CONVICTED

    Convicted of first-degree murder; re-sentenced to life with parole eligibility after 25 years.

    citation on file

  • James Young Havens III

    CONVICTED

    Charged as accessory to first-degree murder; pleaded guilty in 2018.

    citation on file

  • Charlie Kay Ely

    CONVICTED

    Initially convicted of first-degree murder and sentenced to life without parole; conviction vacated in 2020; pleaded guilty to second-degree murder and was released.

    citation on file

  • Michael Shane Bargo Jr.

    CONVICTED

    Convicted of first-degree murder as ringleader and shooter; sentenced to death.

    citation on file

  • Justin Edward Soto

    CONVICTED

    Pleaded guilty to first-degree murder; sentenced to life without parole.

    citation on file

Places

Summerfield, Florida, United States

29.0028, -82.0129

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Common questions

What happened to the victim?
Fifteen-year-old Seath Jackson was lured to a friend's house in Summerfield, Florida, beaten, shot, and killed on April 17, 2011, by five youths including his ex-girlfriend; his body was burned and the ashes dumped in a rock quarry.
Where did the murder happen?
Summerfield, Florida, United States.
Who was convicted?
Amber Elizabeth Wright (Convicted of first-degree murder; re-tried and re-convicted; sentenced to life with parole eligibility after 25 years.), Kyle Lonnie-Duan Hooper (Convicted of first-degree murder; re-sentenced to life with parole eligibility after 25 years.), James Young Havens III (Charged as accessory to first-degree murder; pleaded guilty in 2018.), Charlie Kay Ely (Initially convicted of first-degree murder and sentenced to life without parole; conviction vacated in 2020; pleaded guilty to second-degree murder and was released.), Michael Shane Bargo Jr. (Convicted of first-degree murder as ringleader and shooter; sentenced to death.), and Justin Edward Soto (Pleaded guilty to first-degree murder; sentenced to life without parole.).
What is the current status of the case?
Status: solved.

Sources

  1. Murder of Seath Jacksonwikipedia · Wikipedia · 2026-07-07
  2. State wants death penalty against Michael Bargo for Seath Tyler Jackson murdernews · CBS News · 2026-07-07
  3. Contemporaneous coverage of the Seath Jackson murder casenews · Associated Press · 2026-07-07
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