Two men will spend the rest of their lives in prison for robbing and killing a teenager in Fulton County more than five years ago, prosecutors said Tuesday.
Jatavious Barnes and Jamarcus Parker, who each faced murder charges, were convicted Jan. 31 and sentenced to life in prison Monday in connection with the 2018 shooting death of 18-year-old Julius Thorne, according to the Fulton County District Attorney’s Office.
The decision was long overdue for Thorne’s mother, who said it finally gave her partial closure and justice after several long years. The trial had been reportedly delayed because of the coronavirus pandemic and other factors.
“To have to wait this long, today is a good day,” Chenne Christopher told Channel 2 Action News. “It doesn’t take away from our loss, but it’s a huge weight that has been lifted.”
Credit: Channel 2 Action News
Credit: Channel 2 Action News
According to an indictment, Barnes and Parker were in a gang and intended to rob Thorne on June 30, 2018, at a Union City apartment complex. At some point during the exchange, Thorne was shot, the indictment said. He had $23 in his wallet at the time, the news station reported.
In 2019, Barnes was released from the Fulton jail on $260,000 bond under the conditions that he not contact Parker, not use drugs or alcohol and not commit any additional crimes. He was placed on house arrest at his Union City home but later violated the terms of his bond on multiple occasions, leading a judge to revoke it during an emergency hearing in January 2020, according to court documents.
Thorne’s father, Lawrence Thorne, said he reached out to the district attorney after some of the teen’s friends saw Barnes in a store. At Monday’s sentencing, Thorne was emotional, saying that his son considered the two men friends before the shooting.
“You all were supposed to be friends,” Thorne said, according to Channel 2. “And this is what you do? How he used to feed you. You forgot? You forgot that part?”
Parker was found guilty of malice murder, felony murder, armed robbery, aggravated assault, possession of a firearm during the commission of a crime and nine counts of violations of the Street Gang Terrorism and Prevention Act. Barnes was convicted of felony murder, armed robbery, possession of a firearm during the commission of a felony, and four counts of violations of the Street Gang Terrorism and Prevention Act.
Spokesperson Pallavi Bailey confirmed that Parker was handed an additional 15 years, while Barnes was sentenced to five. They were both sentenced to life without the possibility of parole.
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