A jury has convicted Jawaune Massey of four counts of first-degree murder and other charges in Sullivan County court for his role in a 2005 Kingsport robbery and double murder and a Piney Flats-based cocaine distribution ring.
Massey, 36, was found guilty as charged Friday of two counts each of premeditated and felony first-degree murder and one count each of especially aggravated robbery and criminal conspiracy to commit aggravated robbery, criminal conspiracy to possess more than 26 grams of cocaine with intent to sell or deliver, possession of over 26 grams of cocaine for resale, and maintaining a dwelling where controlled substances are used or sold. His trial began Aug. 13 in Sullivan County Circuit Court Judge Jerry Beck’s courtroom.
The verdicts were announced just after 1 p.m., and then Beck sentenced Massey to life in prison with the possibility of parole after 52 years on each of the four murder counts. A Nov. 9 hearing has been tentatively scheduled to sentence Massey on the remaining charges and decide the issue of consecutive sentencing.
The murder and robbery charges stemmed from the Nov. 18, 2005, robbery and fatal shootings of Jeffrin Nolan, 27, and Terrance Alexander, 21, inside the former Solé candle shop at 828 Myrtle St. in Kingsport. Nolan suffered two gunshots to the back of his head and was pronounced dead at the scene, while Alexander suffered a single gunshot to the back of his head and was later pronounced dead at a hospital.
The drug charges stemmed from Massey's involvement in a cocaine distribution ring headed up by his half brother, Osheene Massey, who has previously pleaded guilty to a laundry list of charges.
"(I'm) relieved that it's over, very satisfied with the result. It's been a long time coming — since 2005," Sullivan County District Attorney Barry Staubus said.
The deliberations of the six-man, six-woman jury stretched from about 11:40 a.m. Wednesday to 1 p.m. Friday. When asked if the length of their deliberations had him worried before, Staubus said, "I knew going into it that they had over 100 pages of instructions. They had more than, I think, 180 exhibits. They heard about 22 witnesses testify..."
All that, Staubus said, in addition to the number of charges Massey faced, was, "quite a bit for the jury to consider."
"So it's understandable given all that, that it would take time for a jury to make an important decision, to take their time and be thorough," he said.
Staubus said he believes the justice of the case is in the fact that Massey has finally been, "held responsible" for the victims' deaths. "There is now a public accounting for what he did. What he did was wrong, and it was murder, and he will serve the rest of his life in prison," he said.
Massey was represented by attorneys Douglas Payne and William L. "Louis" Ricker. They had argued Massey was in Baltimore and innocent of all his charges, with two witnesses testifying about Massey’s life in Baltimore.
Ricker was not in court Friday, and Payne declined comment after the verdicts were read.
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Massey found guilty on four counts of first-degree murder, gets life sentence
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