26-year-old Kansas City man sentenced to ‘Hard 50’ in Johnson County gas station killing
A Johnson County judge sentenced a 26-year-old Kansas City man to life in prison for a 2022 fatal shooting at an Overland Park gas station, the district attorney’s office announced Friday.
Judge Michael P. Joyce sentenced Zarrell Semaj Finley to the Kansas “Hard 50,” which means he will have to serve 50 years before becoming eligible for parole. Joyce also sentenced Finley to 11 months for being a felon in possession of a firearm. The two sentences are to run concurrently, the Johnson County District Attorney’s office said in a news release.
Last month, a jury found Finley guilty of first-degree murder and illegally possessing a firearm in the fatal shooting of 26-year-old Shaquille J. Jackson in July 2022 outside a BP Gas Station at Antioch Road and College Boulevard. Jackson was injured in the shooting and later died at the hospital.
During the sentencing hearing, Joyce denied the defense’s motions for acquittal and a new trial.
Finley’s attorney had sought to have the conviction overturned, saying prosecutors failed to provide evidence that the killing was premeditated. The attorney also filed a motion for a new trial.
In response, prosecutors argued that the evidence, which included surveillance video, was sufficient to support the verdict. The footage showed Finley and Jackson were laughing and getting along before the shooting. At one point, Jackson put his arm around Finley’s shoulder in a friendly way, according to court documents.
At one point in the video, Finley lunged at Jackson and grabbed a backpack, which contained the murder weapon, an assault-style rifle. Once Finley had control of the backpack, he walked away. The video showed Finley stop at his car, pull the rifle out and walk toward Jackson, according to court documents.
The video then allegedly showed Finley point the rifle at Jackson’s head, lower the weapon and then lift it again and shoot at Jackson, according to court documents. Finley then returned to his car, grabbed the backpack and started to drive away. According to court documents, he stopped to pick up a witness before leaving the gas station.
