'A hole in my heart': New York gang member gets life sentence for 2019 Lebanon city shooting

Standing before Lebanon County Court of Common Pleas Judge Charles Jones Jr. Tuesday morning, James Jeter's mother said she couldn't look at Lindley Thelismond because the role he played in the death of her child has killed her "from the inside."

"I have a hole in my heart that I cannot replace, I cannot fill, it doesn't matter what I do," she said during Thelismond's sentencing hearing. "(Thelismond) took so much from me and my family."

Almost four years after he was charged, Lindley Thelismond, of New York, was sentenced to life in prison for the 2019 shooting death of Jeter, with the possibility of parole in 50 years. Thelismond was found guilty in June 2022 of first-degree homicide in what officials called a gang-related incident.

In court, Thelismond apologized to the family, while asking Jones to consider leniency in his sentence because of the work he was doing to improve himself while being incarcerated.

"I'm not saying that I did this or not ... I'm just saying we all did bad things in our life, and we all try to move forward with the positive things," he said.

Lindley Thelismond:'He killed my friend': New York gang member found guilty in 2019 Lebanon city shooting

During his sentencing, Jones told Thelismond if he's sorry for what he's done "you'll show it every day in how you live."

"The question of did you shoot Mr. Jeter, I think that question has been answered," he said to Thelismond during the sentencing, later adding. "I don't believe Mr. (Richard) Andino did that, I believe you did that, and I believe you are responsible for that. And I believe you will have to suffer the consequence."

During the June 2022 trial, Richard Andino testified he was playing video games at his home on the 1000 block of Orchard Ave. in 2019 when an argument broke out. During the argument, Thelismond reached into a drawer, pulled out a 9mm Taurus hand gun and shot Jeter.

"He killed my friend in my house where my kids were, then went home to sleep as if nothing happened," Andino said in June.

Andino, Thelismond and Jeter were all identified as being members of the Crips, a gang based out of Brooklyn, New York. Andino testified that he was ordered by bosses of the gang to help Thelismond find living arrangements in Lebanon after getting into trouble in Brooklyn.

Thelismond was in Lebanon to hide because of his alleged connection to a fatal shooting in New York City, according to officials. The victim lived in Vanderveer, a distinct subsection of the housing projects in Brooklyn.

Jeter and Thelismond had never met before coming to Andino's home in 2019, according to testimony. After shooting Jeter, Andino said Thelismond turned the gun on him but was not able to fire because the slide of the gun was locked open.

Thelismond, who was 17 at the time, was apprehended in the 300 block of North 12th Street within hours of the incident.

After Thelismond escaped, Andino said he took his two children and got into a SUV with two other Crip members. As they turned into an alley behind Andino's house, the headlights revealed three guns, including the 9mm, which Andino took.

After being stopped and arrested by Lebanon City police, Andino assisted in identifying Thelismond as the shooter and ascertaining his location for authorities.

During the trial officials presented the jury with the 9mm, which had evidence of gunshot residue and Thelismond's thumb print on the magazine. They also produced a red and grey jacket, that officials said Thelismond left in the alleyway after the shooting.

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There is a difference in crimes committed today by young people than there was 20 or 30 years ago, according to Lebanon County District Attorney Pier Hess Graf. Officials are seeing more violent crimes, including shootings and homicides with firearms by 17-year-olds.

"It use to be you had a problem, you go outside, potentially fist fight about it and that was the end of it," she said during Thelismond's hearing. "Now it's you have a problem, you argue, you post it on social media, you go home, you get a gun ... we are seeing more shootings today than I ever have before in this job."

Public defender Kevin Dugan said Thelismond's progress at the Lebanon County Correctional Facility, getting mental health treatments and attempting to obtain his high school diploma, should be taken into consideration during the sentencing.

"This is a case were there aren't any winners," he said. "You have a family who has prematurely lost a loved one. You have a young man ... a minor at the time of this offense, that's now facing a lengthy incarceration time. Nothing that's happened since February 2019, very unfortunately, will change any of those things at this particular time."

Dugan added that Andino also was responsible in Jeter's death. During the trial Dugan cited instances where Andino gave false information about his identity on the 911 phone call and when he was first interviewed by police.

Andino was not present at Tuesday's hearing.

Matthew Toth is a reporter for the Lebanon Daily News. Reach him at mtoth@ldnews.com or on Twitter at @DAMattToth

This article originally appeared on Lebanon Daily News: New York gang member gets life sentence for 2019 Lebanon city shooting