After a jury found him guilty last year of the murder of a man in a Bismarck motel on September 20, 2022, a teenager from North Dakota received a life sentence with parole.
James Hill, State District Court judge, said that he could not discount the verdict of the jury against Jesse Taylor Jr. who was 16 years old at the time Maurice Thunder Shield’s death, South Dakota. The Bismarck Tribune reported that the judge was also upset with Taylor’s lawyer for referring to him as a “child”.
The judge said to Taylor, “You were an innocent child who shot five bullets at another human being with a 9mm pistol.” The court heard testimony in this case, and it was quite frankly overwhelming. In a brutal act of violence, you killed an innocent victim. The argument of self-defense was made to me, but I found it nonexistent. The jury concluded that there was no credible evidence that you were being threatened.
Taylor refused to speak during his sentencing. After 20 years, he will be eligible for a reduced sentence because he was still a minor at the time of the crime. After serving approximately 55 years, he will be eligible for parole.
The Judge criticized Taylor’s argument of self-defense, noting that there was no credible evidence of a threat.
Taylor’s lawyer said that at trial, the teen acted out of self-defense following a verbal argument with Thunder Shield. The prosecutor stated that this argument was without legal foundation, as Taylor could have escaped Thunder Shield and intended to kill him with the handgun by firing five shots in a few seconds.
A NORTH DAKOTA man who killed an 18-YEAR OLD boy following a political argument has had his charges reduced
Taylor was also convicted of aggravated assailant for allegedly injuring a worker at a motel in the shooting. He received ten years imprisonment for this offense to be served simultaneously.