Man pleads guilty to double murder in shooting that also injured young boy in Kansas City
A 20-year-old Kansas City man pleaded guilty Wednesday to murder in a triple shooting that killed two people and injured a young boy in Kansas City, according to court documents.
David Emerson pleaded guilty in Jackson County Circuit Court to two counts of second-degree murder and one count of first-degree assault in the killing of 31-year-old Ashley Pettiford and 34-year-old Jermaine Jackson in February 2022. Pettiford’s son Prince Moore, who was 5 years old at the time, was critically injured after being shot in his right eye.
As part of a plea agreement, prosecutors dismissed charges of armed criminal action and unlawful use of a weapon.
The triple shooting drew an outcry from victims’ families and community members who said the city’s violent crime problem was becoming their children’s problem.
According to court documents in the case, surveillance video from a Kansas City apartment building showed Emerson walk up to the victim’s SUV and open and close the passenger door to the SUV. He then ran around to the driver’s side, where he opened the door, leaned in and fired a gun.
The video showed him lean in the vehicle two more times, firing inside, before fleeing with a white sack, according to court records.
Emerson was arrested after a standoff with police on March 4, 2022.
A sentencing hearing for Emerson has been set for 1 p.m. on Oct. 5.
This story was originally published September 28, 2023 at 12:40 PM.
