KEITH AGEE AND SHEILA AGEE SENTENCED TO LIFE FOR THE MURDER OF 18-YEAR-OLD BROOKLYN SIMS

PENSACOLA, Fla. — Eighteen-year-old Brooklyn Sims went to work at a Pensacola Home Depot on August 11, 2023. She never returned home to her young daughter.

Brooklyn was confronted in Aisle 52 by Keith Agee, the 20-year-old father of her child. Witnesses testified that Agee accused Brooklyn of giving him a sexually transmitted infection before pulling out a handgun and opening fire.

Brooklyn was shot seven times and died inside the store.

Investigators later discovered that Agee’s mother, Sheila Agee, had exchanged a series of messages with her son before the murder. Prosecutors used those messages to prove that Sheila did more than know what her son intended to do—she encouraged him and helped coordinate the deadly confrontation.

Both mother and son are now serving life in prison without the possibility of parole.

A 90-MINUTE DRIVE TO COMMIT MURDER

During his December 2023 trial, Keith Agee admitted that he left work in Alabama, went home to retrieve his gun and drove approximately 90 minutes to the Home Depot on Davis Highway in Pensacola.

Agee claimed he had recently tested positive for an STD and believed Brooklyn was responsible.

After entering the store, he found Brooklyn working with an inventory crew. Witnesses testified that he approached her, accused her of infecting him and then began shooting.

Agee fled the store but was arrested a short time later after contacting law enforcement.

A jury convicted him of first-degree premeditated murder on December 20, 2023. He received a mandatory sentence of life in prison without parole. WEAR-TV reported on Agee’s conviction and sentence.

BROOKLYN’S MEDICAL RECORDS CONTRADICTED HIS CLAIM

After Agee was convicted, prosecutors presented evidence showing that Brooklyn did not have the infection he blamed her for transmitting.

A message sent six days before the murder reportedly included a photograph from Brooklyn’s medical appointment confirming that she did not have an STD.

Prosecutor Bridgette Myers Jensen told the court that the evidence was presented to restore some dignity to Brooklyn, even though it did not change the legal outcome of the case.

TEXT MESSAGES EXPOSED THE MOTHER’S ROLE

The messages exchanged between Keith and Sheila Agee became central to the prosecution.

According to evidence presented in court, Keith told his mother that he intended to kill Brooklyn. Instead of warning Brooklyn or contacting law enforcement, Sheila encouraged her son and discussed where the killing should occur.

One message from Sheila told her son that if he did not come kill Brooklyn, he was a “mf b***h.”

Other messages included warnings not to shoot inside Sheila’s vehicle and instructions to wait until Brooklyn was out of the vehicle. Sheila also sent Keith a map showing the Home Depot’s location.

Brooklyn and Sheila were working for the same inventory company. Sheila reportedly drove Brooklyn to work on the day of the murder.

Prosecutors argued that Sheila knew her son was traveling from Alabama with a gun, knew that he intended to kill Brooklyn and helped direct him to the store.

FIRST TRIAL ENDS IN MISTRIAL

Sheila Agee’s first trial began in November 2024 but ended in a mistrial after serious problems developed inside the jury room.

Jurors reported heated arguments, concerns about their physical safety and racial tensions during deliberations. The judge also criticized a juror who reportedly worked on crossword puzzles during testimony and deliberations.

Judge Coleman Robinson granted the defense’s request for a mistrial after determining that the jury could no longer fairly complete its work. People reported on the mistrial and juror controversy.

SECOND JURY CONVICTS SHEILA AGEE

Sheila’s second trial began in August 2025.

Keith, already serving life for Brooklyn’s murder, testified in his mother’s defense. He claimed that his mother never wanted him to hurt Brooklyn and had not directed him to commit the murder.

Sheila also testified and maintained that she never believed her son would actually kill Brooklyn. She said the messages were part of the angry and chaotic way the two communicated.

Prosecutors argued that her words, actions and failure to warn Brooklyn demonstrated active participation. They emphasized that Sheila knew what her son intended, directed him toward the Home Depot and remained near Brooklyn immediately before the shooting.

After deliberating for approximately two hours and 45 minutes, the jury convicted Sheila of principal to first-degree premeditated murder.

She was immediately sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole. Court TV documented the trial, conviction and sentencing.

BROOKLYN’S MOTHER ADDRESSES THE COURT

Before Sheila was sentenced, Brooklyn’s mother, Cornelia Sims, spoke about the loss of her daughter and the effect the murder had on Brooklyn’s young child.

Cornelia said Sheila had failed not only Brooklyn but also her own son and granddaughter.

Brooklyn’s daughter lost her mother, while her father and paternal grandmother will spend the remainder of their lives in prison.

Sheila acknowledged that she had failed Brooklyn, her granddaughter and her son but did not ask the family for forgiveness.

MOTHER AND SON WILL NEVER LEAVE PRISON

Keith Agee was convicted of personally shooting and killing Brooklyn.

Sheila Agee was convicted under Florida’s principal law, which allows someone who aids, encourages or assists in a murder to be held legally responsible as if that person committed the crime directly.

Keith and Sheila were each sentenced to life without parole.

Brooklyn Sims was 18 years old. She was a daughter, a sister, a friend and the mother of a two-year-old girl.

All individuals are presumed innocent unless proven guilty in a court of law.