STARKVILLE – A man accused of killing a 9-year-old in a drive-by shooting is headed to prison for the rest of his life.

Christopher Perkins, 33, was visibly shaken Thursday in Oktibbeha County Circuit Court when Judge Lee Howard assessed the mandatory sentence for his first-degree murder conviction in the Jan. 5, 2022, death of Lasang Kemp Jr. The jury deliberated for almost three hours before delivering the verdict.

Perkins also received a sentence of 20 years each for two aggravated assault charges related to the shooting, to be served concurrently.

The day of the murder, Kemp Sr. and another of his sons exchanged gunfire earlier with Barron “B-Man” Hubbard, Tabyron “Tayy Tayy” Fisher and Dellveon “Dez” Lindsey, according to court testimony. The latter three regrouped to get weapons and pick up Perkins before tracking down a minivan belonging to the Kemp family on Santa Anita Drive. There, the prosecution alleges the four men drove by the minivan and Perkins opened fire, striking Kemp Jr. twice. While one shot resulted in a grazing wound, the other was fatal.

Three of Kemp Jr.’s relatives and another passenger were in the minivan at the time but not his father.

“This case (was) like a horror film. Like a movie that went wrong, ‘Nightmare on Santa Anita Drive,’” 16th Circuit District Attorney Scott Colom said. “… It doesn’t get more heartless than shooting into a car and putting a bullet right through the heart of a 9-year-old child. That’s why this is a nightmare, because someone who had nothing to do with this lost his life.”

Perkins was arrested Feb. 25, 2022, and initially faced one count of murder and four counts of aggravated assault. His was the eighth arrest made in the shooting, for which the investigation also charged accessories after the fact and served at least 62 warrants.

The three charged accomplices – Hubbard, Fisher and Lindsey – testified against Perkins during the trial, giving occasionally inconsistent accounts that nevertheless each directed responsibility toward Perkins.

Perkins’ defense attorney Walter Zinn cast doubt on the reliability of their testimony and on the accuracy of material evidence from the police. Zinn argued the three men had used Perkins as a sacrificial lamb, inviting him along so that they would have someone to take the fall when Hubbard opened fire.

Colom agreed those witnesses had compromised credibility, but he argued in his closing statements that imperfect recall of events is normal and the common elements of their stories suggested they were telling the truth in at least the broad strokes.

“All four of (these men) are guilty,” Colom told the jury during closing arguments Thursday. “But if you’re going to prosecute the devil, you’re going to have to go to hell to get the witnesses. I’m not going to get deacons sitting in a car with somebody planning to go get revenge. … And they didn’t all give their statements at the same time. It’s not credible that these guys are trying to plant this on Cristopher Perkins.”

Colom also pointed toward several pieces of physical evidence, most prominently cell phone records of a phone Perkins used that placed him in the area.

Zinn alleged Perkins couldn’t have identified the vehicle as their target, leaned across the car, rolled down the window and opened fire in the time it took them to drive past. He also questioned the validity of the cell phone position data, given its best accuracy is a 10-mile radius.

“Ten miles in Starkville, do you know how far that reaches citywide?” Zinn said. “Mr. Perkins could’ve been in West Point based on that information. He could’ve been in Pheba.”

While the sentence is technically life without parole, Colom told The Dispatch after the trial that Mississippi’s geriatric statutes would still allow Perkins to apply for parole when he turns 65.

“I think the jury listened to the evidence, listened to the law and reached the right verdict,” he said. “The evidence was strong, the law was clear that he was guilty of killing this 9-year-old if he was even involved with (the shooting,) even if he didn’t pull the trigger. And I think the evidence shows he did pull the trigger. … This is the consequence of taking the law into your own hands.”

Zinn told The Dispatch after sentencing that Perkins might explore the possibility of appeal.

Colom said in a Friday morning press conference at Starkville Police Department that the three other suspects involved in the shooting would be charged but would likely receive lighter sentences for their cooperation.

He expects all three will plead guilty.

“Several of them admitted to very incriminating, violent behavior. They’re going to be prosecuted,” he said. “It hasn’t been resolved yet, but I expect it to be resolved soon. … Their testimony was crucial for trial, as they’re the only people that can describe what happened in the vehicle.”

Importance of cameras

Colom and Starkville Police Chief Mark Ballard also both spoke of the importance of camera evidence in the investigation and conviction.

Ballard confirmed after the conference that a mix of public and private footage had helped assemble a video timeline of the crime.

“We in the state of Mississippi have taken the lead for a real-time intel center, embracing technology,” Ballard said. “That tech played an important role in proving the leads in this case. It’s something I can only see expanding.”

Starkville approved funding to buy 20 more public cameras this year, and a proposed ordinance under consideration by the board of aldermen would require cameras at businesses open past 11 p.m. in the leisure and entertainment district.