A teenage gunman who admitted to fatally shooting a man during a confrontation outside an Independence home last August will spend decades behind bars.
Jackie Turner, 18, was sentenced on Monday to 30 years in prison. The prison term matches a recommendation from prosecutors made as part of Turner’s July guilty plea to murder in Kenton County Circuit Court.
Turner was 17 years old when he was arrested alongside his mom and older brother after 23-year-old Seth Burns’ was shot to death a year ago this week.
Turner previously admitted in court that his mom, 39-year-old Amanda Turner, drove him to the residence knowing he was armed with a gun and there would likely be a fight. His older brother, 22-year-old Xxavion Turner, also had a gun, the younger Turner said.
Jackie Turner did not make a statement during his sentencing. His attorney declined to comment when reached by The Enquirer after the hearing.
Investigators said an argument on social media led to a real-life confrontation outside a house on Archer Court that culminated in the shooting on Aug. 25.
The posts involved the girlfriend Amanda Turner’s older son, Xxavion Turner and “insults about children and parenting skills, or lack thereof,” Kenton County Commonwealth’s Attorney Rob Sanders previously told The Enquirer.
Prosecutors said Amanda Turner, who pleaded guilty last week to charges including criminal facilitation of murder, was involved in text messages encouraging the fight.
Doorbell camera video showed Amanda Turner also led her sons and two daughters, as well as Xxavion Turner’s girlfriend, down the street while screaming toward the Archer Court home, according to a criminal complaint.
However, the fight didn’t happen because the younger Turner shot Burns in the torso after a brief exchange of words between the two groups, and the Turner family fled, prosecutors said.
Xxavion Turner is facing charges including murder and is expected to go on trial in November, court records show.
Amanda Turner’s daughters, Lakera Hughes and Keavier Turner, and Xxavion Turner’s girlfriend, Emma Ryan, were each charged with rioting and unlawful transaction with a minor but have since pleaded guilty as charged.
In statements written to the court, Burns’ family described him as “the glue that held the family together,” said Judge Kathy Lape.
“This was absolutely dumb,” Lape said. “And Mr. (Turner) you’re going to get 30 years in jail, but in reality, you’ve given the family members of Seth Burns a life sentence.”
“Their grief is overwhelming and will stay that way forever,” she said.
In a statement, Michael Burns, Seth Burns’ father, wrote that his son didn’t know the Turner family, wasn’t part of the argument and was only there that day because he was spending time with a woman who instigated the dispute.
“I don’t believe Jackie meant to kill my son. As much as I would like to believe he came there knowing what he was going to do, I know better,” he wrote. “That doesn’t negate the fact that it happened.”
“He (Seth Burns) was a huge part of all of our lives and it’s a hard pill to swallow knowing that he died completely innocent,” Michael Burns added.
This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Northern Kentucky teen sentenced in killing when mom took him to fight
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