JEFFERSON — Malikhi Coleman was sentenced to 37.5 years to life in prison at a hearing on Monday afternoon after previously being convicted for the murder of Fredrick Johnson in Ashtabula on July 26, 2022.
At the end of March, after a four-day trial, a jury found Coleman guilty on one count of murder, an unclassified felony, one count of felonious assault, a second-degree felony, one count of discharge of a firearm on or near prohibited premises, a first-degree felony, and one count of improperly handling firearms in a motor vehicle, a fourth-degree felony.
At trial, prosecutors alleged that on July 26, 2022, after a back-and-forth between two groups at the then-Ohio Village Apartments in Ashtabula, Coleman got into a car and followed the other group, then shot and killed Fredrick Johnson on Ohio Avenue with an AK-47-style rifle.
Chief Assistant Prosecutor Dawn Cantalamessa, who prosecuted the case, previously said the maximum possible sentence was 37.5 years.
Judge Thomas Harris said Coleman had been incarcerated for 630 days in this case.
Malcolm Stewart Douglas, Coleman’s attorney, asked Harris to take into account Coleman’s youth when the incident occurred, and the conduct of everyone involved.
“We would ask the court to impose a sentence that is fair,” he said.
He asked the court to merge the first two counts in this case for sentencing purposes.
“I don’t believe the lengthiest sentence is in order,” Douglas said.
Harris gave Coleman the chance to speak, but he declined.
Harris said the age of the victim also needs to be considered.
“Regardless of what I do to Mr. Coleman, Fredrick Johnson is still dead, and will be for as long as I sentence Mr. Coleman to prison,” Harris said.
A representative from the Victims of Crime Advocate Office read a statement from Johnson’s mother, Ida Evans.
“Let me ask you something, what do you think a life should be valued?” she said in the letter.
The letter said her last memory of her son was seeing him at the hospital.
“I felt the impact in my soul,” she said in the letter.
The letter states Coleman had the chance to walk away before he shot Johnson.
“You had the opportunity to put the gun away and walk away, you didn’t,” the letter said.
Johnson is deeply missed, his mother said in the letter.
Cantalamessa asked Harris to sentence Coleman to 37.5 years in prison in this case.
Harris noted that Coleman was acquitted a few weeks before the shooting in this case, and said he would not hold that acquittal against him.
“One thing that’s somewhat amazing from the testimony in this case, is I believe there were 15 shots fired,” he said.
Coleman could have been charged with a felony for each of those shots, Harris said.
“The video showed all kinds of little kids running around in the middle of summer,” Harris said. “We’re lucky we didn’t have 15 murder counts.”
Coleman was sentenced to 37.5 years to life in prison.
Harris said it was amazing more people were not killed in this incident, given the number of people that could be seen outside in the area in surveillance video introduced at trial.
Julius Simmons, the driver of the car from which Coleman fired, was also sentenced on Monday.
Simmons made a deal with prosecutors before trial, pleading guilty to one count of involuntary manslaughter, a first-degree felony, and one count of obstructing justice, a third-degree felony, according to court records.
Michelle Fisher, Simmons’ attorney, noted that three letters were sent to the judge in this case, and said he had never been in trouble before this incident, with the exception of a minor misdemeanor.
“I think what occurred back on July 26, 2022, was very out of character for him,” she said.
Simmons spoke to Johnson’s mother, and told her she doesn’t deserve the pain she has been going through.
“I’ve been praying that God heals your pain, and that you find peace,” he said.
He asked for her forgiveness.
He spoke to Harris next, and said he was willing to admit his wrongs, and he was wrong to be around Coleman.
“That doesn’t make me a bad person,” he said. “Since I’ve been here, I’ve grown more as a person, and I’ve learned some valuable lessons.”
Simmons said he does not believe he deserved 11 years, after trying to keep Coleman from shooting Johnson.
Harris said Simmons was facing up to 44 years in prison before he accepting the plea agreement.
“Your lawyer, quite frankly, negotiated one heck of a deal for you, because you know I just gave Malikhi 37 and a half years to life in prison,” he said. “He won’t be eligible for a parole hearing until 2060. You will be out long before then.”
Cantalamessa said Simmons testified at trial, and prosecutors believe he testified truthfully.
Simmons was sentenced to 11 to 16.5 years in prison, a sentence that was stipulated when he pleaded guilty in his case. Simmons was given credit for 630 days in jail in this case.
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