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In a packed Fresno courtroom, two women with tears in their eyes hugged each other.
One was Renee Sheppard, the mother of former Fresno State student Jonquel Brooks, 21. He was sentenced Friday to life in prison for killing Brant Daniels and shooting three others in a dispute over a Sony PlayStation 2.
The other was Brant's mother, Lorna Daniels.
She said in Fresno County Superior Court that she has forgiven Brooks for killing her 19-year-old son.
"You were a good kid who made a wrong choice," Daniels said. "Now, my son is in heaven."
Emotions ran high as Fresno County Superior Court Judge Gary Orozco sentenced Brooks to 25 years to life in prison for the first-degree murder of Daniels, who was gunned down inside Brooks' apartment just west of the California State University, Fresno, campus.
Brooks received another 25 years in prison for using a gun.
The judge then tacked on another 59 years and four months in prison for Brooks' conviction on three counts of attempted murder in the shooting of Daniels' friends, Roderick Buycks Jr., Drew Pfeiff and Kodi Shiflett. Buycks was shot in the neck and Pfeiff in the shoulder.
Brooks said he never intend to shoot anyone.
"I pray for your forgiveness," he said to Daniels' family and friends. "I have a lot of love for Brant Daniels."
Prosecutor Burton Francis said he believed Brooks' showed "genuine remorse." But he also said Brooks sealed his fate long before the shooting. Brooks liked to flash a gun, deal drugs and act like "a wannabe gangster," Francis said.
"He set up a situation where he could not back down," Francis said.
The shooting happened May 7, 2007, at the University Village Apartments on Barstow Avenue. Brooks was a freshman studying criminal law at the time.
During his trial, which ended in April, Brooks testified that he feared for his life and fired in self-defense because he believed the four -- who were much bigger than the 5-foot-9-inch Brooks -- were going to attack him.
According to witnesses, the four went to Brooks' apartment to look for Buycks' stolen PlayStation console. Brooks testified he didn't steal the PlayStation, but the four kept arguing with him.
Brooks said he went into his bedroom and grabbed his .22-caliber revolver. He testified that he first fired a warning shot into the floor. When the victims kept advancing toward him, he said, he unloaded the handgun into the victims.
After the shooting, Brooks ran from the scene. He later surrendered to authorities. Police did not find the stolen PlayStation in his apartment, defense lawyer Jane Boulger said.
Friday, Brooks' grandmother, Gwendolyn Rogers, told the judge that Daniels and his friends should be held responsible because they barged into her grandson's apartment and threatened him.
"They took the law into their own hands," Rogers said. "I call that vigilante justice."
Francis, the prosecutor, said he was offended that Brooks' family would portray the conviction as "a lynching."
He said Brooks could have avoided the fatal confrontation by locking himself in his bedroom with his gun and cell phone and calling police. "These were college kids," Francis said. "They did not choose to get shot."
After the hearing, one of the victims said he felt sorry for Brooks.
Buycks said he and the other victims used to play basketball with Brooks and considered themselves friends. Now, Brooks will spend the rest of his life in prison for a PlayStation that cost about $100, he said.
"We didn't go over there to cause trouble," Buycks said. "He made a wrong decision, and now he has to pay for it."
source
this is pathetic.
One was Renee Sheppard, the mother of former Fresno State student Jonquel Brooks, 21. He was sentenced Friday to life in prison for killing Brant Daniels and shooting three others in a dispute over a Sony PlayStation 2.
The other was Brant's mother, Lorna Daniels.
She said in Fresno County Superior Court that she has forgiven Brooks for killing her 19-year-old son.
"You were a good kid who made a wrong choice," Daniels said. "Now, my son is in heaven."
Emotions ran high as Fresno County Superior Court Judge Gary Orozco sentenced Brooks to 25 years to life in prison for the first-degree murder of Daniels, who was gunned down inside Brooks' apartment just west of the California State University, Fresno, campus.
Brooks received another 25 years in prison for using a gun.
The judge then tacked on another 59 years and four months in prison for Brooks' conviction on three counts of attempted murder in the shooting of Daniels' friends, Roderick Buycks Jr., Drew Pfeiff and Kodi Shiflett. Buycks was shot in the neck and Pfeiff in the shoulder.
Brooks said he never intend to shoot anyone.
"I pray for your forgiveness," he said to Daniels' family and friends. "I have a lot of love for Brant Daniels."
Prosecutor Burton Francis said he believed Brooks' showed "genuine remorse." But he also said Brooks sealed his fate long before the shooting. Brooks liked to flash a gun, deal drugs and act like "a wannabe gangster," Francis said.
"He set up a situation where he could not back down," Francis said.
The shooting happened May 7, 2007, at the University Village Apartments on Barstow Avenue. Brooks was a freshman studying criminal law at the time.
During his trial, which ended in April, Brooks testified that he feared for his life and fired in self-defense because he believed the four -- who were much bigger than the 5-foot-9-inch Brooks -- were going to attack him.
According to witnesses, the four went to Brooks' apartment to look for Buycks' stolen PlayStation console. Brooks testified he didn't steal the PlayStation, but the four kept arguing with him.
Brooks said he went into his bedroom and grabbed his .22-caliber revolver. He testified that he first fired a warning shot into the floor. When the victims kept advancing toward him, he said, he unloaded the handgun into the victims.
After the shooting, Brooks ran from the scene. He later surrendered to authorities. Police did not find the stolen PlayStation in his apartment, defense lawyer Jane Boulger said.
Friday, Brooks' grandmother, Gwendolyn Rogers, told the judge that Daniels and his friends should be held responsible because they barged into her grandson's apartment and threatened him.
"They took the law into their own hands," Rogers said. "I call that vigilante justice."
Francis, the prosecutor, said he was offended that Brooks' family would portray the conviction as "a lynching."
He said Brooks could have avoided the fatal confrontation by locking himself in his bedroom with his gun and cell phone and calling police. "These were college kids," Francis said. "They did not choose to get shot."
After the hearing, one of the victims said he felt sorry for Brooks.
Buycks said he and the other victims used to play basketball with Brooks and considered themselves friends. Now, Brooks will spend the rest of his life in prison for a PlayStation that cost about $100, he said.
"We didn't go over there to cause trouble," Buycks said. "He made a wrong decision, and now he has to pay for it."
source
this is pathetic.
