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Stuart police chief does 'not apologize' for lack of information about fatal shooting

Chief Joseph Tumminelli dismisses rumors that victim left to die in street
Posted at 10:12 PM, Jul 16, 2022
and last updated 2022-07-17 08:30:26-04

STUART, Fla. — Three days after Devone Delancy was shot and killed, there's still no answers as to the 18-year-old's killer.

"One thing I can say, they are a tight-knit family that do a lot of family things with each other, so I'm pretty sure right now they're all together, holding each other and keeping each other strong," Jimmy Wilson, a mentor to Delancy, told WPTV on Saturday.

Asked about the investigation, Wilson said silence speaks louder than words.

"When you don't say nothing and you don't give no indication that you're going to say something later, until you say something, the community is going to think you don't care," Wilson said.

Stuart Police Chief Joseph Tumminelli took to Facebook on Saturday to say he does "not apologize" when it comes to criticism on the delay of information to the public about Wednesday's fatal shooting, citing that it would've been detrimental to the investigation.

Tumminelli said he reviewed body camera footage from the night of the shooting, listing a timeline of events, while also dismissing rumors that first responders let the victim "lay in the street for 30-45 minutes to die."

"Nobody wants to hear hearsay because, you know, hearsay goes from playing cards to cutting up the cards," Wilson said.

Sabrina Wilson is a close friend to Delancy and said she was there the night of the shooting.

She said the statements made by Tumminelli were not true, and she's not happy with the way the investigation has been handled.

"That's a bunch of bologna," Sabrina Wilson said.

Loved ones said it's time for the police and community to work together and help bring closure to the family.

"No matter what the police do, it's going to be some type of justice, if they catch the guy and give him all kinds of time, but the main justice in the community like this is to prevent it from happening again," Jimmy Wilson said.

Loved ones told WPTV that funeral arrangements are in the works, but the family would like the details to remain private.

Anyone with information about the shooting is asked to call Stuart police Sgt. Dave Duran at 772-287-1122.