ST. LOUIS — A St. Louis teen, arrested and charged in 2020 in connection to a fatal shooting in the city’s Baden neighborhood that left a 14-year-old boy dead, was sentenced Monday to two decades in prison.
The video above is from January 2020.
According to a press release from Joel Currier, chief communications officer with the 22nd Judicial Circuit Court of St. Louis, 17-year-old Marcus “Mojo” Ursery received 10 years for second-degree murder and another 10 years for armed criminal action for fatally shooting Timothy Lucas, 14, three years ago.
On Jan. 18, 2020, officers with the St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department responded to the 8300 block of North Broadway regarding a call about a shooting. When they arrived, they found Lucas suffering from a gunshot wound. Lucas was taken to a hospital where he was pronounced dead.
Lucas’ death was caught on surveillance video at Elite Super Market and Grill, which showed then-14-year-old Ursery walking from Vinh’s convenience store parking lot onto the supermarket parking lot, pulling out a gun and firing several gunshots at Lucas. Lucas was shot in the chest and fell to the ground.
Video from the convenience store caught Ursery purchasing something there, which also placed him at the scene of the incident. He was arrested nearly two weeks later.
Days following the shooting, Theodore Lucas, Lucas’ father, spoke out about saying goodbye to his son earlier than expected.
“Nobody wants to lose their child. You got to keep your babies close to you,” he said.
Theodore told 5 On Your Side at the time that Lucas will be forever remembered as a boy who “lived life to the fullest … loved to dance and was animated.” Lucas also possessed athletic skills that “shined through in both football and basketball.”
On July 24, 2020, Ursery was charged as an adult in Lucas’ murder after he was not allowed to go to the state’s Dual Jurisdictional Program. This program provides education, job training, treatment and counseling until participants turn 21 years old, according to the press release.
Ursery has to serve the sentences consecutively. However, he must serve a minimum of 85% of the first sentence before starting the next sentence, which requires at least three years served before he’ll be eligible for parole.
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Resources for crime victims:
If you have been a victim of a crime or know someone who has been, 5 On Your Side has compiled a list of resources.
The Crime Victim Center of St. Louis has multiple programs to support victims of crime. Crime Victim Center’s programs range from direct services to crime victims as well as “creating awareness and change within the systems they encounter.”
Life Outside of Violence "helps those harmed by stabbing, gunshot or assault receive the treatment, support and resources they need to find alternatives to end the cycle of violence."
The Urban League of Metropolitan St. Louis has the Neighborhood Healing Network, which serves people who have experienced crime, violence or been the victim of an incident that caused trauma.
Cure Violence is an international organization that is present in a handful of St. Louis neighborhoods. Violence interrupters are trained to deescalate violent situations within their own communities.