PANAMA CITY — A teen was sentenced to 40 years in prison for murder Wednesday for his role in a drug deal near a school in which two men were shot in the head.
Judge Michael Overstreet put Katari Jackson, 19, behind bars for 40 years after Jackson entered a no contest plea. The first 25 years of his sentence are a minimum mandatory, so he will not be eligible to reduce his sentence during that time.
Jackson was scheduled for trial beginning Monday, and he would have faced life in prison if he’d been found guilty of second degree murder in the death of Christopher Purswell, who was killed March 1, 2013, near Rutherford High School.
Another man, 23-year-old Brandon Junlakan, was shot in the face but survived.
Jackson’s plea comes about a week after a codefendant, Damon Washington, made a deal with prosecutors to testify against Jackson, according to court records. Washington’s deal will see him sentenced to 10 years after he pleaded no contest to manslaughter and attempted robbery with a firearm.
Two days after Washington struck his deal, Overstreet ordered him moved to the jail in Jackson County at prosecutor Larry Basford’s request due to a threat to his safety in the Bay County Jail.
Washington and Jackson were two of several men and women swept up by police and sheriff’s deputies in the days after the shooting. Most did not face severe charges.
Jackson wanted to rob Purswell of a modest amount of marijuana — about $200 worth of either synthetic or natural marijuana, according to records.
When they met, Jackson demanded Purswell show him the dope; when Purswell got out of the car and produced it, Jackson shot him in the head.
Junlakan was still in the car. He closed the door, but Washington and Jackson reopened and shot him under his eye.
An earlier version of this story is posted below:
PANAMA CITY — A teen who shot a two men in the head during a drug deal near a school was sentenced to 40 years in prison for murder Wednesday.
Judge Michael Overstreet put Katari Jackson, 19, behind bars for 40 years after Jackson entered a no contest plea. The first 25 years of his sentence are a minimum mandatory, so he will not be eligible to reduce his sentence during that time.
Jackson was scheduled for trial beginning March 17, and he would’ve faced life in prison if he’d been found guilty of second degree murder in the death of Christopher Purswell, who was killed March 1, 2013 near Rutherford High School.
Another man, 23-year-old Brandon Junlakan, was shot in the face but survived.