In the early hours of a September morning in Vicksburg, Mississippi, the life of 18-year-old Ethan Scott Powell, a White/Caucasian male, was tragically cut short. On September 7, 2020, Powell was discovered lying in the street on Abraham Drive, having sustained multiple gunshot wounds. Despite being rushed to a local hospital, he succumbed to his injuries. The news of the death of the Porters Chapel Academy football player sent ripples of shock and grief through the community.
The investigation into the shooting quickly pointed to a suspect, 15-year-old Kemond Jones. An argument between Jones and Powell preceded the fatal shooting. Following the altercation, Jones allegedly shot Powell multiple times. Jones later turned himself in to law enforcement. Due to the nature of the crime, the young suspect was charged with murder and his case was bound over to be handled in the adult court system. Initially, his bond was set at $1 million, but it was later reduced.
The legal proceedings that followed brought the case to the forefront of the Vicksburg community. In March 2022, a Warren County jury found Kemond Jones guilty of the deliberate design murder of Ethan Scott Powell. During the trial, a witness testified to a prior disagreement between Jones and Powell. The defense put forth a claim of self-defense, asserting that Powell had slapped Jones and reached for a gun. However, the jury ultimately convicted Jones.
Following the guilty verdict, Kemond Jones was sentenced to 40 years in prison, with 30 years to be served and 10 years suspended. An appeal was later filed, arguing that improper evidence had been allowed at trial and that the verdict was against the weight of the evidence. The appeal was denied, and the conviction and sentence were upheld, bringing a close to the legal chapter of a story that ended one young life and forever altered another.
