Jurors only needed about an hour to convict a Jacksonville man who was 18 when he shot and killed both his father and best friend outside a shopping plaza on Baymeadows Road in June 2025, according to court records.
Larry Allen Baldwin Jr., now 20, will be sentenced to life in prison after being found guilty of first- and second-degree murder Thursday, Sept. 24.
It started as an argument between him, 41-year-old Larry Baldwin Sr. and 19-year-old Rubisnney Giraldo-Mina. The son told detectives his father had called him there to help with his truck that wouldn’t start. So he and his friend hitched a ride and were working on the truck for about an hour when he said he told his father he was tired and wanted to go home. That set off an argument between the two,
and then Giraldo-Mina intervened, according to the arrest report.
Baldwin Jr. said he knew that Giraldo-Mina, who was walking toward him when it happened, carried a gun but also acknowledged he never pulled it out, according to the report.
Security video from a neighboring business shows Baldwin Jr. and Giraldo-Mina facing each other, and the suspect is walking backwards as he fires his gun once towards the ground. The two continue arguing, and Baldwin Jr. is heard saying, "I will kill you right now" as he shoves the victim and points the gun at him. The two bump chests and father tries to separate them.
Baldwin Jr. is heard saying numerous times, “You don't think I will." Giraldo-Mina taunts him, saying he won’t because he’s “soft,” calling him an expletive. This further enrages him and he is seen pistol-whipping Giraldo-Mina. Then while attempting to strike him again, the gun fires and hits his father.
The father stumbles to the sidewalk, and Giraldo-Mina is seen walking towards him with his hands slightly raised but does not appear to have anything in them. This is when Baldwin Jr. opens fire on his friend.
A witness also told police the victim did not appear to be the aggressor.
“Based on the review of the video surveillance and the witness statement, R.M. was never heard threatening the victim, was never observed pulling the firearm out of his waistband, nor did his actions indicate that he was an active threat to the suspect or the other victim,” the arrest report concluded.
Scott Butler has been an editor/reporter specializing in public safety coverage for 26 years with The Florida Times-Union. He can be reached at sbutler@jacksonville.com.
This article originally appeared on Florida Times-Union: Son, 20, guilty in deaths of father and best friend in Jacksonville
