PORTLAND, Ore. (TCN) — A judge sentenced a 28-year-old man to 14 years in prison for shooting at his brother’s accused killer, causing an uninvolved man to die.
The Oregonian/Oregon Live reports Marquise Epps was handed the sentence after he pleaded guilty in June to first-degree manslaughter in connection with the fatal shooting of Jimmy Lee Melton. Epps reportedly did not fire the shot that struck and killed Melton, but Multnomah County Senior Deputy District Attorney Jeff Auxier reportedly argued that Epps’ actions led to Melton’s death.
On Oct. 1, 2020, at around 5:30 a.m., the Portland Police Bureau responded to a shooting at Capt’n Jacks Trailer Park near Northeast 111th Avenue and Northeast Sandy Boulevard and found Michael Epps Jr. deceased. The medical examiner determined 38-year-old Epps Jr. died from a gunshot wound and ruled his death a homicide.
Later that day, at 7:46 p.m., police returned to the same location about a different shooting. When they arrived, they found two victims, including Melton, suffering from gunshot wounds. Police said at the time the other victim was expected to recover.
Portland Police
The Multnomah County District Attorney’s Office announced three weeks later that they were charging Quentin Blackmon, the man suspected of killing Michael Epps, with second-degree murder with a firearm, unlawful use of a weapon with a firearm, and being a felon in possession of a firearm. He was convicted in May of killing a 66-year-old man in August 2020.
According to The Oregonian/Oregon Live, Marquise Epps went to the trailer park Oct. 1, 2020, for a vigil in honor of his brother. He and other attendees reportedly started firing at Blackmon, and a stray bullet struck a trailer wall and killed Melton. Epps is the only person who has been charged in connection with Melton’s death.
Blackmon has stood trial for Michael Epps’ death three times, but each has resulted in a mistrial.