Javier Blood acquitted on all charges in Canton fatal drive-by shooting

Javier Blood looks to the ceiling in a sigh of relief after his acquittal Friday on all charges tied to the shooting death of 65-year-old Jenny Norris of Canton.
Javier Blood looks to the ceiling in a sigh of relief after his acquittal Friday on all charges tied to the shooting death of 65-year-old Jenny Norris of Canton.

CANTON – A Stark County jury acquitted Javier Blood of all charges tied to the August drive-by shooting death of 65-year-old Jenny Norris.

Blood's trial began Tuesday in Stark County Common Pleas Court. The 22-year-old from Canton was accused of firing at Norris and others as she stood in the yard of a home in the 100 block of Belden Avenue SE on Aug. 7.

Canton: Trial begins for accused gunman in Canton fatal drive-by shooting

A jury deliberated less than 12 hours before reaching not guilty verdicts Friday on all charges, including murder and felonious assault.

The case was heard by Judge Frank Forchione.

Stark County Criminal Division Chief Prosecutor Dennis Barr and Assistant Prosecutor Kristen Mlinar tried the case with Blood's defense being handled by attorney Keith Warstler.

After the verdicts, the Stark County Prosecutor's Office declined to comment on the case since co-defendant Terrel Lipkins, 23, of Canton, awaits trial.

The Norris family also declined to make a public comment with Lipkins' pending trial.

Lipkins is accused of being the driver in the vehicle used in the shooting. Blood was the accused gunman.

Warstler told The Canton Repository he was pleased with the trial's outcome.

"It's the state's burden to prove beyond a reasonable doubt in this case and I don't think they did so in this case, and the jury concluded the same -- and we're very pleased," Warstler said.

Blood faced a possible life term in prison without parole had he been convicted.

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A Stark County jury acquitted Javier Blood of all charges tied to the August drive-by shooting death of 65-year-old Jenny Norris.
A Stark County jury acquitted Javier Blood of all charges tied to the August drive-by shooting death of 65-year-old Jenny Norris.

What happened to Jenny Norris?

Norris was standing with her neighbor, Nicholas Harvey, and a third person when shots were fired at the group outside their homes.

Harvey survived a second shooting the next day, escaping with a gunshot wound to the leg.

Harvey returned fire during that confrontation, killing 29-year-old Aaron Lucas. Investigators later concluded Harvey acted in self-defense but he was convicted of a weapons-related charge.

Harvey was one of the witnesses testifying at Blood's trial, along with two others present at the time of the shooting.

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Blood and Lipkins previously served time for a 2020 drive-by shooting in Plain Township.

The pair shot two men and were convicted of felonious assault. They were later granted judicial release in early 2021, court records show.

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What happened during Javier Blood's trial?

Blood was wearing a GPS ankle monitoring device at the time of the Aug. 7 shooting.

Investigators tracked his whereabouts, pulling video from various gas stations and other locations that showed Blood continuously getting into the front passenger side of a vehicle driven by Lipkins.

At no point was Blood seen getting into the back of the vehicle involved in the shooting that day.

According to trial testimony, a black gun was seen hanging outside the window from the rear passenger seat behind the driver. No one positively identified Blood as the gunman, only that they saw the window down and someone wearing a black long sleeve shirt or hoodie holding a gun outside of it.

Stark County Canton Crime Lab firearm expert Abigail Pond processed shell casings found at the crime scene and determined one gun, a 9mm Glock, was used in the shooting.

According to testimony, Lipkins is seen home surveillance video outside his girlfriend's home with a black gun with an extended magazine in his waist band and a second time with the firearm in his hand. The gun was similar to the one seen by witnesses during the shooting.

Police arrested Lipkins, and investigators said his clothing tested positive for gunshot residue. Blood was arrested several days later. No gunshot residue was found on him or his clothing at the time of his arrest, investigators said.

Lipkins' trial remains set for March 15.

Reach Cassandra cnist@gannett.com; On Twitter @Cassienist

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This article originally appeared on The Repository: Jury finds Javier Blood not guilty of murder in drive-by shooting