On a warm summer evening in Lexington, Kentucky, what began as a joyous birthday celebration ended in a devastating tragedy that would forever alter the lives of a young couple. Jonathan Thomas Price, a 26-year-old male and a proud Marine, was out with his wife, Megan, to celebrate her 24th birthday on June 21, 2014. After an enjoyable evening at the Austin City Saloon, the couple headed to their car in the Woodhill Shopping Center parking lot around 1:30 a.m., unaware of the violence that was
about to unfold.
As they made their way through the parking lot, two armed men suddenly approached them with the intent to rob them. The assailants demanded Megan's purse. In a selfless act of protection, Jonathan intervened after his wife was shot in the leg during the confrontation. In the ensuing struggle, one of the attackers fatally shot Jonathan in the back. He was rushed to the University of Kentucky Chandler Hospital, where he was pronounced dead at 2:01 a.m. Megan sustained a non-life-threatening gunshot wound to her leg. The initial police description of one of the suspects was a man with shoulder-length dreadlocks, wearing a white T-shirt and carrying a silver handgun.
The investigation into the senseless killing led authorities to two suspects: Dawan Mulazim and his nephew, Quincinio Canada. Both men were subsequently arrested and faced a litany of charges, including murder, robbery, and assault. The legal proceedings that followed were arduous for the grieving family. In the first trial, held in June 2018, a jury acquitted Quincinio Canada of all charges connected to Jonathan's death. The same jury, however, was unable to reach a unanimous verdict for Dawan Mulazim, resulting in a mistrial for his charges in this case. Despite the outcome of the murder trial, both men were convicted on unrelated robbery charges, leading to lengthy prison sentences for those crimes.
Justice for Jonathan's death would be delayed but not denied. In a retrial that took place in October 2019, a new jury found Dawan Mulazim guilty on all counts related to the events of that tragic night, including the intentional murder of Jonathan Price, first-degree robbery, complicity to first-degree robbery, and second-degree assault. The verdict finally brought a measure of closure to Jonathan's family and loved ones, who remembered him as a loving husband and a man who had honorably served his country.
