On the afternoon of December 26, 2018, 16-year-old Judane Holmes was inside the New US Fried Chicken on Bidwell Avenue in Jersey City, a place he often frequented. Moments after placing his order, a masked individual entered the restaurant and fatally shot the Snyder High School student. Jersey City police received a report of shots fired at approximately 3:25 p.m. and found Holmes with gunshot wounds at the scene. He was pronounced dead just ten minutes later.
The Regional Medical Examiner's Office later confirmed the cause of death as gunshot wounds and the manner as homicide.
The investigation into the shooting, which authorities deemed gang-related, quickly led to the identification of three juvenile suspects from Jersey City. In early January 2019, authorities arrested a 14-year-old, a 15-year-old, and a 16-year-old in connection with the murder. The two younger teens were charged as accomplices with their cases remaining in juvenile court. The oldest of the three, Jaquay Gleaton, also 16 at the time of the incident, was identified as the shooter. His case was subsequently waived from juvenile to adult court.
In January 2020, Jaquay Gleaton pleaded guilty to a reduced charge of aggravated manslaughter. A year later, the now 18-year-old Gleaton was sentenced to 18 years in New Jersey state prison. Under the terms of his sentence, he is required to serve at least 85 percent, amounting to just over 15 years, before becoming eligible for parole. The tragic death of Judane Holmes also led to further violence, with at least one retaliatory shooting occurring in January 2019 that resulted in two injuries and additional arrests. In the wake of her son's death, Holmes's mother described the killing as a 'senseless' act of violence, pushing back against claims that it was an act of retaliation.
