Gang members sentenced to 50 years for killing teenager over red shoes in 2015
In an emotional Los Angeles courtroom Wednesday, two gang members were sentenced for the killing of 19-year-old Tavin Price in front of his mother at a Hyde Park car wash last year.
Just before the verdict was read, Kanasho Shadrick Johns, one of three men being sentenced in the case, asked to address the court. He would be all right, he said, with a glance toward the audience.
Johns’ sister shouted approvingly, sparking protests from the victim’s family.
Jennifer Rivers, Price’s mother, had heard enough. She leaped to her feet and was restrained by family and a bailiff from heading toward Johns’ family and friends in the back of the courtroom.
“He had the audacity to sit in court, with their friends and family, and look at me like I’m nothing, and still say something,” Rivers said later. “I just snapped.”
When the proceedings resumed, Johns, 29, and Kevin Deon Johnson, 26, were read their sentences: 50 years in prison. Johns, whom prosecutors said fired the fatal shots May 29, 2015, was given an additional three years for being a felon with a firearm. The jury also found gun and gang allegations to be true.
A third man, Dwight Smith, 31, pleaded guilty to manslaughter and testified against Johns and Johnson. He is scheduled to be sentenced next week and could face 12 years in state prison.
Before the chaos erupted in the courtroom, Rivers spoke about what she lost when her son was killed.
“You have children that you care about and miss you,” she said, addressing the killers. “I pray you never get to see them again. I will never see my son again either. All I have left are old pictures from his funeral.”
Sign up for Essential California
The most important California stories and recommendations in your inbox every morning.
You may occasionally receive promotional content from the Los Angeles Times.
