HORACE JAMES JR - 14 yo - / Convicted: Jeremiah Corbett - Jacksonville, FL

by twinkletoes Sat Mar 02, 2013 6:21 am

Jacksonville man convicted of killing teen while firing into crowd

Posted: February 28, 2013 - 7:08pm

Jeremiah Corbett will spend the rest of his life in jail for killing
14-year old Horace James Jr. and shooting Alexis Johnson, then 17, in
the head in 2010.

On Thursday, Corbett, 21, was convicted of first-degree murder for
killing James and attempted murder for the shooting of Johnson. Under
Florida law, he will be sentenced to life in prison without the
possibility of parole.

When the verdict was announced, Corbett’s mother screamed “no” and
several family members began crying until bailiffs ejected them from the
courtroom.

James’ mother muttered “thank you, Jesus” and later hugged and
thanked State Attorney Angela Corey and Assistant State Attorney Richard
Mantei.

Mantei said Corbett pulled into the Walgreens parking lot in a
minivan with three other people, pulled out his gun and from the back
seat began firing into a crowd of people. Most of the people in the
parking lot were teenagers who had recently left the former Club Menage
at the intersection of University Boulevard and Arlington Road after a
teen night and birthday party.

Mantei said it’s still not completely clear who Corbett was trying to
shoot, but James and Johnson were not the intended targets.

Markiesha Rivers, Horace James’ sister, said the conviction allows the family to start moving on.

“My brother can finally rest in peace,” she said. “I’m happy that justice has been served.”

The jury rejected an argument from defense attorney Charles Fletcher
that Corbett is innocent and the real killers are blaming his client to
save their own skin.

Two men who said they were in the van with Corbett, Rapheal L.
Thompson, 21, and Bryant L. Smith, 22, testified against him. Both have
pleaded guilty to accessory after the fact in return for their
testimony and are scheduled to be sentenced this month.

Fletcher said Thompson and Smith are responsible, and when they
realized that police were onto them they fingered Corbett to save their
own necks.

The fourth man in the van, Eric Johnson, has also testified against
Corbett and didn’t face criminal charges. He is Alexis Johnson’s brother
and testified that he didn’t expect Corbett to shoot anyone and didn’t
know his sister had been shot until later.

Alexis Johnson recovered and testified at the trial.

http://jacksonville.com/news/crime/2013-02-28/story/jacksonville-man-convicted-killing-teen-while-firing-crowd#ixzz2MMQE0ZR6