Brevard County man arrested in connection with New Year's Day shooting death

BREVARD COUNTY, Fla. — A 54-year-old man was arrested Thursday in the fatal shooting of a man on New Year's Day in the Mims neighborhood, the Brevard County Sheriff’s Office said.

Deputies were called at about 8 p.m. on Jan. 1 to a home on Quail Haven Drive near U.S. Highway 1 and Lionel Road after Richard Todd Blankenship shot Terence Irwin, Sheriff's Office spokesman Tod Goodyear said.

"Upon arrival, Blankenship told deputies that he had shot the victim in self-defense after the victim attacked him," Goodyear said. "The victim was transported from the scene to the hospital, where he later died from his injuries."

The Brevard County medical examiner determined Irwin's death to be a homicide after performing an autopsy, investigators said.

Blankenship was booked into the Brevard County Jail on charges of second-degree murder. He's being held without bail.

No other details were given.

Anyone with information about the shooting is asked to call Brevard County Agent Wayne Simock at 321-633-8413 or Crimeline at 800-423-8477.

Cox Media Group