Evansville teen sentenced to 65 years in prison for 2021 murder
EVANSVILLE — An Evansville teenager on Monday was sentenced to serve 65 years in prison after he was found of guilty of murdering a man at an apartment complex in 2021.
Police arrested 18-year-old Samajui Barnes in October, and prosecutors charged him with murder and using a firearm in the commission of a felony. A jury found Barnes guilty of both counts in August.
Vanderburgh County Circuit Court Judge David Kiely sentenced Barnes to serve 55 years in prison for the murder charge and 10 years for the firearm charge. The court determined Barnes posed "a high risk to re-offend" and that he is a "violent offender."
Jonathan Stitts shot at apartment complex
On Oct. 1, when Barnes was 17, police said he shot 37-year-old Jonathan Stitts multiple times at Stitts' Parett Street apartment complex, according to a sworn affidavit of probable cause. First responders attempted to perform life-saving measures, but Stitts passed away at the scene.
Barnes was captured on surveillance footage running out of Stitts' third-floor apartment while holding a handgun, detectives wrote in the affidavit. He turned back and "fired several rounds in the direction of the apartment door." Stitts then fell to the floor.
About one month after the shooting, prosecutors also charged 16-year-old Arkee Coleman with murdering Stitts. He was 15 at the time. Coleman's jury trial is scheduled for Nov. 14.
The Vanderburgh County Public Defenders Office will represent Barnes should he decide to appeal his conviction.
Houston Harwood can be contacted at walter.harwood@courierpress.com with story ideas and questions. Twitter: @houston_whh
This article originally appeared on Evansville Courier & Press: Evansville teen sentenced to 65 years for 2021 murder
