Richard Jinkins, a 30-year-old African-American man, was fatally shot on November 21, 2012, in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The incident occurred in a seemingly ordinary moment turned deadly, near the sound barrier of Interstate 94. That evening, Jinkins was with three other men, including Jermaine Edward Harris. The group had purchased drugs and parked their vehicle just east of 2611 3rd St. N.
After getting high, Jinkins and another man stepped out of the SUV to relieve themselves against the highway wall. It was at this vulnerable moment that Harris also exited the vehicle and shot Jinkins multiple times before driving away.
The investigation into Jinkins's death quickly pointed to a simmering conflict between him and Harris. According to a longtime acquaintance of both men, there had been ongoing animosity because Jinkins had been seeing Harris's former girlfriend, who was also the mother of Harris's child. This romantic jealousy was identified by authorities as the motive behind the fatal shooting. The SUV used on the night of the killing was later found in Columbus, Ohio, at the ex-girlfriend's address. Harris, then 28, was arrested in Brooklyn Center and charged with second-degree murder.
The legal proceedings that followed were unusually prolonged. Harris stood trial for Jinkins's murder on three separate occasions. The first two trials, where he faced first-degree murder charges, resulted in hung juries, leading to mistrials. Despite the setbacks, the Hennepin County Attorney's Office persisted, believing Harris was a danger to the community. In February 2014, a third jury convicted Jermaine Edward Harris of second-degree murder in connection with the death of Richard Jinkins. Harris was subsequently sentenced for the crime.
