In the spring of 2015, a burst of gunfire shattered the peace of a Greenville, Mississippi neighborhood, leaving a young man dead and a community in search of answers. Kenneth Howard, a 25-year-old Black male, was found on April 22, 2015, in the 300 block of Sunflower Lane, having been shot four times. The swift response of the Greenville Police Department's Special Operations Unit, who were coincidentally in the area executing a search warrant, led them directly to the scene of the crime.
The sound of the gunshots guided the officers, and their immediate arrival allowed for a rapid escalation of the investigation. Within minutes, their attention turned to a nearby residence where they located Marquel Mangum. Inside the home, they discovered the weapon used in the fatal shooting, cementing Mangum's connection to the crime. He was taken into custody, and the process of building a case against him began in earnest.
Following a thorough investigation into the death of Kenneth Howard, Marquel Mangum, who was 24 years old at the time, was formally charged with first-degree murder. The case proceeded through the legal system and was set for trial in the Washington County Circuit Court. However, before a jury could be seated, Mangum entered into a plea agreement.
In a courtroom proceeding before Circuit Court Judge Richard Smith, Marquel Mangum pleaded guilty to the lesser charge of second-degree murder. As a result of his plea, he was sentenced to 40 years in the custody of the Mississippi Department of Corrections. The terms of his sentence stipulate that he must serve 30 of those years without the possibility of early release or parole. Following his release from prison, Mangum will be subject to an additional ten years of probation. The conviction brought a measure of closure to the family of Kenneth Howard, knowing that the individual responsible for his death had been brought to justice.
