William May Obituary, Death – The suspect responsible for shooting and killing Walton County Deputy William May on Wednesday has been identified as 58-year-old Timothy Mark Jarvinen, according to the incident report released by the Walton County Sheriff’s Office.
Jarvinen, a white male, was a resident of Shakespeare Court in DeFuniak Springs, located near the Dollar General store on Highway 90, where the incident occurred. Reports indicate that Jarvinen biked to the store on Wednesday afternoon, where he was involved in a disturbance and refused to leave. Deputy May responded to the scene after receiving a call about the incident and began escorting Jarvinen out of the store. At that point, Jarvinen reportedly pulled a gun on the deputy. Deputy May, in turn, fired at Jarvinen, who was pronounced dead at the scene.
During a press conference, Walton County Sheriff Mike Adkinson Jr. discussed Jarvinen’s background, though he did not reveal his identity at the time. Adkinson noted that Jarvinen had no history of violent behavior and was a concealed carry permit holder. “He had other weapons in his residence when we searched it, but nothing to indicate violence,” Adkinson stated, adding that Jarvinen had never been arrested by the Walton County Sheriff’s Office.
Court records show that Jarvinen had no criminal record in Walton County or Northwest Florida, although he had two past civil cases in the Walton County Clerk of Courts—one in 2017 and another in 2018, both related to financial matters. According to Sheriff Adkinson, Jarvinen had lived in the area for several years and had minor interactions with law enforcement, including welfare checks over the past couple of years.
As the investigation continues, the community is grappling with the tragic loss of Deputy William May, who was responding to a call for help and lost his life during the encounter.
