A normal Monday night in Seneca turned into a family’s worst nightmare when 17-year-old Kaden Kimbrell was shot in the back of the head while sitting behind the wheel of his car. The gunfire shattered the quiet routine along Goddard Avenue in the Utica Mill Hill neighborhood just after 8 p.m. Now, a high schooler who had his whole life ahead of him is lying in a hospital bed, facing the devastating reality that he will likely be paralyzed from the neck down.
Kaden was driving his 2014 Dodge Dart near Sirrine Street when another car, a 2012 Hyundai Elantra, pulled up right behind him. Out of nowhere, gunshots rang out into the night air. Bullets ripped through the back of Kaden’s car, striking the teenager before he even knew what was happening. The shooter did not stop to check on him, speeding away into the darkness and leaving Kaden severely wounded.
Emergency responders rushed to the scene on Goddard Avenue after frantic calls came into dispatch. Seeing the severity of Kaden’s head injury, medics called in a helicopter to airlift him directly to a regional hospital. Family members and friends gathered in shock as doctors worked endlessly to stabilize the young man, whose life was drastically changed in a single split second.
Local law enforcement acted fast to piece together what triggered the violence. Using automated FLOCK license plate cameras stationed around town, investigators spotted the suspect vehicle heading away from the neighborhood. Officers pulled over the Hyundai Elantra at a business near the East End Intersection in Seneca later that same evening. While the occupants in the car at that moment were cleared of direct involvement, evidence gathered inside gave detectives the breaks they desperately needed.
By Wednesday, deputies booked two 18-year-old local men into the Oconee County Detention Center. Javon Gaylin O’Neal Leonard was taken into custody mid-afternoon, followed hours later by Damajion Sincere Patton. Both young men now face heavy charges, including attempted murder, possession of a weapon during a violent crime, and discharging a firearm into a vehicle. Both are currently held without bond as the community struggles to grasp how everything went wrong so fast.
Despite these arrests, the painful ordeal for Kaden’s family is far from over. Authorities are still actively hunting for a third suspect, 18-year-old Nevada Jaziah Normia Jones of Seneca. Warrants have been issued for Jones on identical attempted murder charges, but he remains on the run, leaving a grieving town on edge while justice remains partially unserved.
For the people of Seneca, the incident has left a deep scar and a heavy cloud over Goddard Avenue. A bright 17-year-old kid now faces a long road of rehabilitation and medical care, surrounded by a heartbroken family praying for strength. Detectives are urging anyone with information on Nevada Jones to call Crimestoppers at 1-844-712-7463 immediately, hoping a simple phone tip will bring final closure to this crime.
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