According to the police report, James Wall, 26, was bringing a shopping cart from the parking lot on Duval Station Road back to the store about 5 p.m. when he exchanged words with Ryan Keys, 27, and Cade Keys, 23. Witness told officers Ryan Keys punch Wall in the face from three to eight times.
Police said Wall was missing several teeth and bleeding from the mouth. Wall, the son of a Jacksonville Airport Authority police officer, was taken to a hospital. Channel 4 was told the victim has the mental capacity of a 12-year-old.
Police said the manager of the Publix provided a video of the brothers inside the Publix and a description and license plate number of the suspects' vehicle, which they located at their home on Milton Drive. According to the arrest report, Ryan Keys refused officers' commands to lie on the ground. When he was pushed to the grown, he refused to put his hands behind his back and had to be forcefully restrained, according to the report.
Cade Keys voluntarily came out of the house, but refused commands to put down a telephone and cigarette and also resisted arrest, offices wrote in the report.
The report quotes Cade Keys as saying the victim said "something smart ass, but I couldn't tell you what it was," and antagonized his brother, Ryan. When told the victim was mentally disabled and asked if the comment justified a beating, he told officers that, "If we'd known that, no." The officers also noted Ryan Keys appeared to be heavily intoxicated.
The report said that Ryan Keys told officers he thought Wall had an attitude and was going to charge his brother because "you know, he had that look." When asked how he felt threatened by the victim, he told the officers, "I will always hit first," according to the report.
