Inset: Jeffrey Young (Warren County Sheriff”s Office). Background: The front yard of the house where Young shot and killed his father in Warren County, Miss. (Google Maps).
A Mississippi man will spend 10 years in prison after admitting he shot and killed his father following what authorities described as one argument too many.
Jeffrey Young Jr., 27, pleaded guilty Friday to second-degree murder in the killing of his 57-year-old father, Jeffrey Young Sr.
After the plea, 9th District Circuit Court Judge Toni Terrett quickly sentenced Young to 40 years in the custody of the Mississippi Department of Corrections, with 10 years to serve behind bars.
The shooting happened in July 2022 at a home on Castle Road in the Camelot Estates subdivision of Warren County, a community a few miles south of Vicksburg.
Authorities found the elder Young dead from a gunshot wound in the front yard of his home.
Warren County Sheriff Martin Pace said the shooting was preceded by a brief argument between father and son, Jackson ABC affiliate WAPT reported. Magnolia State Live later reported that the dispute centered on car speakers.
During his sentencing hearing, Young Jr. told the court that his father often abused alcohol and became violent, according to a courtroom report by the Vicksburg Daily News.
“He would go in a rage and get violent every day,” the defendant said. “I’m sorry, and he was my father, but that day he just pushed me too far.”
The defendant ultimately shot his father multiple times.
The victim’s own problems were repeated throughout the hearing.
A defense attorney representing Young Jr. told the court that law enforcement had responded to the residence in question on numerous occasions due to incidents involving the killer’s father.
The state, however, sought to counter such arguments by noting that the slain man had his back turned to his son when the fatal shot was fired – and that he posed zero threat to anyone at the time.
The prosecutor also said Young Jr. went to his room to get the gun he used to kill – and asked the court to impose the maximum sentence.
But the story veered back to the victim – with emphasis.
A cousin testified that Young Sr. once slammed Young Jr. against a wall and began punching him while he was drunk at a Kroger. The defendant’s third-grade teacher testified that Young Sr. often appeared at functions after drinking. A family friend said the victim was frequently intoxicated, on drugs, and abusive to his wife and child.
In the aftermath of the shooting, the deceased man’s wife, Tracie Young, 59, allegedly lied to investigators about her son’s involvement and was charged with one count of accessory after the fact.
At least one loved one spoke on Young Sr.’s behalf.
“My brother was a loving and caring person,” the victim’s sister said. “I still love my nephew, but I want him to get the max for the murder of my brother.”
