In the late summer of 2022, a horrific scene was discovered in a Syracuse, New York, apartment that would unravel a story of brutal violence. Thirty-two-year-old Alexis Sellin and her boyfriend, Jami Crawford, aged 46, were found deceased in their Burnet Avenue residence on August 24th. A home healthcare worker made the grim discovery, finding both victims had been shot multiple times.
Tragically, Sellin's young son, who is blind and non-verbal, was found alive in the apartment, having been left alone with the bodies for several days.
The investigation into the double homicide led Syracuse police to identify three suspects. Jamel Weston was the first to be charged with first-degree murder and criminal possession of a weapon; he was already in custody on unrelated narcotics charges. Further investigation and interviews pointed to two additional suspects, Lashaun Dixon and Donnell Thornton, who were subsequently arrested and faced the same charges. At the time of their arrests, Dixon was on federal probation and incarcerated for a separate gun charge, while Thornton was apprehended following a court appearance for a different homicide case.
The prosecution built its case on circumstantial evidence, including cellphone data and surveillance footage, which ultimately led a jury to convict all three men on all counts, including the top charge of first-degree murder. The trial, which lasted nearly three weeks, concluded with a swift deliberation by the jury, who returned the guilty verdicts after just one day. In November 2025, LaShawn Dixon, Donnell Thornton, and Jamel Weston were each sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole.
The sentencing was an emotional ordeal for the families of Alexis Sellin and Jami Crawford. In powerful victim impact statements, family members expressed their profound grief and anger towards the three men. Sellin's mother recounted the horror of her daughter being shot in the back of the head, leaving her unrecognizable. Crawford's mother described her son's death as an execution and spoke of the immense void his murder had left in her life. While Dixon maintained his innocence and stated his intention to appeal the verdict, the judge expressed a hope that the men would spend the rest of their lives reflecting on their actions. The case left a lasting scar on the community and highlighted the devastating impact of senseless violence.
