Jason Mitchell, 19, appeared via videoconference in a Fort Myers courtroom. His three co-defendants, Eric Rivera, 17; Charles Wardlow, 18; and Venjah Hunte, 20, made their first court appearance Saturday.
All four have been charged with unpremeditated murder, home invasion with a firearm or another deadly weapon and armed burglary. They will be transported to Miami, though authorities haven't said when.
Probable cause affidavits for Mitchell and Rivera said the two confessed to participating in armed burglary. According to the reports, Mitchell and Rivera admitted entering the home and said someone had a gun and shot Taylor, but they didn't identify who. Police and attorneys also have said some of the young men confessed, though they wouldn't elaborate.
Taylor died Tuesday, one day after being shot at his home in an affluent Miami suburb. Police said the suspects were looking for a simple burglary, but it turned bloody when they were startled to find Taylor home.
The suspects all have prior arrests, according to police, including drug, theft and gun charges, though friends and family have defended them.
Police remain silent about how the suspects wound up at Taylor's home. However, his former attorney Richard Sharpstein said Taylor's sister was dating a relative of Wardlow and that one or more people tied to the suspects may have attended her 21st birthday party at the athlete's home.
Miami-Dade police wouldn't confirm any of the possible links.
Early Monday, Taylor and his longtime girlfriend, Jackie Garcia, were awakened by loud noises at his home and within moments he was shot. Neither the couple's 18-month-old daughter, also named Jackie, nor Garcia were injured, but the bullet hit the femoral artery in Taylor's leg, causing significant blood loss.
He never regained consciousness and died early Tuesday.
Authorities haven't said whether they've linked the suspects to a break-in at Taylor's home eight days before the shooting. In that incident, someone pried open a front window, rifled through drawers and left a kitchen knife on a bed.
Sharpstein said Taylor's family was grateful for fast police work in the case, but that the arrests gave little comfort. Their mourning was set to continue Monday at noon with a massive funeral at the Pharmed Arena at Florida International University.
The Washington Redskins played their first game since Taylor's death on Sunday, but lost on a last-second field goal to the Buffalo Bills, 17-16. The game was started with a moment of silence with fans decked in Taylor's jersey, and teammates with a #21 patch on their jerseys and a sticker on their helmets.
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