PORTSMOUTH, Va. — The suspect in a 2024 double shooting in Portsmouth was sentenced to 30 years in prison on Wednesday, according to the Portsmouth Commonwealth's Attorney's Office.
Just before 1:30 a.m. on April 20, 2024, officers responded to the 600 block of Lancer Drive, near Airline Boulevard, for a report of suspicious activity. They found two men who had been shot and killed, later identified as 31-year-old Eric Pernell Jones Jr. and Russell Branden Barnes.
Jamal Antonio Parham returned to the scene later and admitted to a detective that he shot Jones, according to the CAO. He was arrested at the scene.
Watch previous coverage: 2 killed in shooting on Lancer Drive in Portsmouth
Parham later pleaded guilty to two counts of second degree murder and two counts of use of a firearm in commission of a felony.
For each second-degree murder conviction, Parham was sentenced to 40 years with 16 years suspended, alonside five years of supervised probation. The sentence for both counts will run concurrently.
Parham was sentenced to three years for each firearm charge, which will be served consecutively with the second degree murder sentences. The total active sentence is 30 years.
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