Journalists mourn as reporter is fatally shot, colleague injured at crime scene in Florida
Journalists, media workers and well-wishers from around the country mourned the loss of a Spectrum News 13 reporter fatally shot Wednesday while covering a murder scene in Pine Hills, Florida.
Spectrum News 13 identified the dead reporter as Dylan Lyons, 24. Photojournalist Jesse Walden was also critically injured.
Sheriff John W. Mina of the Orange County Sheriff's Office said Lyons was with a news crew at around 4 p.m. on Wednesday to cover the murder of 38-year-old Nathacha Augustin, who was found shot earlier that morning. While Lyons and Walden were in or near a vehicle, 19-year-old Keith Melvin Moses, the suspect in Augustin's murder, returned to the scene and opened fire on them. Police have since detained him.
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"We are deeply saddened by the loss of our colleague and the other lives senselessly taken today. Our thoughts are with our employee's family, friends and co-workers during this very difficult time," Spectrum News said in a statement Wednesday night. "We remain hopeful that our other colleague who was injured makes a full recovery. This is a terrible tragedy for the Orlando community."
Lyons' death triggered an outpouring of condolences and grief from well-wishers, his family, and members of the media.
"Our hearts go out to the family of the journalist killed today and the crew member injured in Orange County, Florida, as well as the whole Spectrum News team," White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre tweeted Wednesday night. "Our hearts are also with the other shooting victims today, their families, and the entire community. Too many lives are being ripped apart by gun violence."
Lyon's fiancée, Casey Lynn, said she lost the "love of my life."
"The love of my life was murdered," she tweeted Thursday morning. "I will never be the same person ever again. Please help my family and I during this time."
In a GoFundMe campaign seeking to raise $25,000 for his funeral, the reporter's older sister, Rachel Lyons, said her brother was a "happy soul" who was "taken too early."
"He was an acting father to his niece and nephew who he loved so much. He loved his fiancé and was a devoted son to his mother and father. Dylan would have been 25 years old in March. He was a happy soul and wonderful person in life," she wrote. "My brother was our baby. He was taken too early from us."
University of Central Florida journalism professor Rick Brunson told WFTV 9 that when Lyons was a student at the school, he was president of the Radio TV and Digital News Association. His LinkedIn page shows that he graduated in 2019 with a degree in journalism and political science. He also pursued a graduate degree in criminal justice.
Brunson, who went to the hospital to support the reporter's family, said Lyons was passionate about his work because he wanted to make a difference.
"He loves journalism, and he loves it because of the difference that he always feels like he can make in whatever community he's in by being on the street with a microphone and a photographer, and telling the stories of the community he's in," Brunson explained. "That's what he's about, and that's why I'm here."
Erik Sandoval of News 6 recalled how hard Lyons had worked to achieve his professional goals.
"I met Dylan during his senior year at UCF. He was our intern at News 6. He spent many nights with me and my photographer as we reported for the 11 pm news. Dylan wanted so badly to be a broadcast journalist. He was excited for his future, and we were excited for him," Sandoval wrote in a Facebook post. "When I saw him last year at an awards ceremony (where he won), I gave him a huge hug. Dylan was talented. Dylan was electric. Dylan had a future. My heart goes out to his family, my colleagues at Spectrum News 13 and his fiancé. This shouldn't have happened."
Other journalists, like Kirstin Garriss, said even though she didn't know Lyons, she was moved by his death because it's something that could happen to any reporter.
"While I didn't know Dylan personally, he was doing was something that wasn't uncommon with the job — something I've done countless times. As reporters, we go into the community to cover stories and we often work on scene in our news cars. We know our jobs can be dangerous but we assume we'll make it home," she wrote on Facebook. "Last night, one of our own didn't make it home to his family. Please keep this family and the entire Orlando community in your prayers. Today, we are all News13."
