In the spring of 2014, the life of a Black / African American teenager, Calvin Edmond, was tragically cut short. On the evening of April 22, the 17-year-old male was with a group of friends near the intersection of Yorktowne Drive and Fairway Drive in Laplace, Louisiana. It was then that another teenager, 16-year-old Isaiah London Jones, opened fire on the group.
Residents in the area heard the gunshots and emerged from their homes to find Edmond lying unresponsive in the front yard of a residence. A bullet had struck him in the back of the head.
Edmond was rushed to a local hospital and later transferred to University Hospital in New Orleans. Despite the efforts of medical personnel, he succumbed to his injuries the following day, April 23, 2014. The investigation into the shooting quickly pointed towards Jones, who reportedly held some animosity towards one or more of the juveniles in the group that Edmond was with. Witness statements were crucial in leading detectives to Jones.
Two days after the shooting, on April 24, 2014, detectives from the St. John the Baptist Parish Sheriff's Office arrested Isaiah London Jones. A search of his home on Williamsburg Drive uncovered spent shell casings that matched those found at the crime scene. Jones, who was accompanied by his parents, gave conflicting statements to investigators and initially denied any involvement in the shooting. He was charged as an adult with second-degree murder, three counts of aggravated assault with a firearm, and aggravated criminal damage to property.
In April 2017, then 19-year-old Isaiah London Jones pleaded guilty to the reduced charge of manslaughter. The decision to allow the plea to a lesser charge was made in consultation with and with the blessing of Calvin Edmond's family, taking into consideration Jones's youth at the time of the crime. Had he gone to trial on the original charge of second-degree murder, he would have faced a mandatory life sentence. During the sentencing, Edmond's mother, Shazell Johnson, made a statement to the court, encouraging Jones to find religion and telling him that she forgave him for the immense pain his actions had caused her family. Following the acceptance of his guilty plea, Jones was sentenced to 30 years with the Department of Corrections.
