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Lakewood Ranch Quarterback Arrested On Murder Charge

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By BART PFANKUCH and HALLE STOCKTON

Sarasota Herald-Tribune

Published: July 14, 2008

BRADENTON – Manatee sheriff's officials today arrested a quarterback of the Lakewood Ranch High School football team on a murder charge in the killing of a 19-year-old man during a drug deal and robbery Sunday night.

Timothy L. Brooks, 18, of the 1600 block of 27th Avenue East in Bradenton, was charged with murder in the shooting death of 19-year-old William J. White on Sunday night. Authorities say Brooks shot White in the neck after robbing him of a necklace after a marijuana deal, according to an arrest warrant.

Brooks is a quarterback and running back on the Lakewood Ranch varsity football team, according to Herald-Tribune archives and Manatee Sheriff's spokesman Dave Bristow. Brooks scored the Mustangs' only touchdown on a pass he threw in the team's annual spring game in May that helps prepare the team for the fall season.

Bristow said Brooks came into the sheriff's office about 1 p.m. Monday after the agency got word to his family that he was wanted for questioning in the killing of White. After speaking with Brooks, he was arrested on the murder charge and taken to jail, Bristow said.

According to the arrest warrant, Brooks shot White in the neck after White and another man had gone to the neighborhood and bought some marijuana. Brooks and another suspect approached the car the two men were in and began questioning them about a previous robbery the suspects believed the victims had perpetrated against them.

When the driver of the car tried to speed off, Brooks shot White, the passenger, in the neck, the warrant states. Bristow said Brooks was arrested based on testimony from witnesses at the scene who picked him out of a photo line-up.

The other suspect, Cody P. Rogers, 18, is still wanted by police.

According to those who monitor Lakewood Ranch sports, Brooks had high potential to be a star and was known for his fast feet on the football field.

White's friend and the driver of the car, Jacob Cunnien, told authorities he began to drive away, heard a gunshot and looked over to see White had been shot. Cunnien drove White to Manatee Memorial Hospital where he was pronounced dead about 20 minutes after the 8:20 p.m. shooting.

Detectives are asking that anyone who knows where Rogers is or has any information about the case call the Sheriff's Office at 747-3011 or CrimeStoppers at 866-634-TIPS.

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