Friday, June 20, 2003 | 10:55 a.m.
A Henderson teen on Thursday pleaded guilty to voluntary manslaughter for what prosecutors call a road-rage slaying.
District Judge Donald Mosley set Jeffrey Jefferson's bail at $50,000 after Jefferson took responsibility for the death of William Shepherd, 54.
In exchange for the plea, prosecutors dropped a single charge of murder with use of a deadly weapon.
Jefferson, 17, will likely be released on bail while he waits to be sentenced.
If Jefferson posts bail, he will be placed on house arrest until he is sentenced on Aug. 14, Mosley said.
Jefferson faces a maximum of 20 years in prison, but he would also be eligible for probation, Chief Deputy District Attorney Chris Lalli said.
Lalli said he had hoped the judge would have set a higher bail, given the severity of the crime.
"This began as a mere traffic dispute, and you end up with an unarmed man shot in the face with a sawed-off shotgun," he said.
Shepherd's family members, who were in the courtroom during the hearing, were visibly upset by the ruling. They declined to comment.
Deputy Special Public Defender Kristina Wildeveld Coneh had argued for the bail, saying Jefferson was high on a "seven-day binge" of methamphetamines at the time of the crime.
She said her client has a history of drug use.
"He has a problem with drugs," she said. "Him staying in jail is not going to address these issues."
Coneh said Jefferson's family members, who were also in the courtroom, would likely be able to post bail.
Lalli said the deal came in part because of Jefferson's age.
"You have a very young individual here," he said. "You have to consider the added immaturity and the lack of life experience."
Lalli said prosecutors also considered what role the victim could have played in the dispute.
"The victim probably did act in a somewhat aggressive manner," he said.
Authorities initially believed Jefferson's passenger, Christopher Giblin, 18, was also involved in the shooting.
But a further investigation led prosecutors to believe that Jefferson was the shooter. Giblin would have testified against Jefferson had the case gone to trial, Lalli said.
"We wanted to be able to call the other person who was in the car as a witness," he said.
Lalli said most of the details surrounding the incident remain unclear, but the men began arguing about a traffic issue while driving. The dispute continued as the men approached a stop sign, he said.
"Words were being exchanged," Lalli said. "The defendant pulled out a sawed-off shotgun."
According to police reports, Henderson Police received a 911 call about 4:40 a.m. April 21 from someone who heard male voices shouting, then heard a gunshot.
About 5:50 a.m. police found Shepherd in the middle of Patrick Lane dead from a shotgun wound.
Jefferson originally denied that he was involved in the killing and later told police that Giblin was the shooter, Lalli said.
Jefferson has two prior juvenile offenses for fighting, but both appear to have been dismissed, Lalli told Mosley.
Coneh said Shepherd had a history of violent behavior. She said an unidentified witness said that he had a similar dispute with Shepherd in the past.
That witness said Shepherd threatened to kill him, Coneh said.
Shepherd's family members told police that Shepherd had a quick temper and often got into fights with other motorists over their driving.
Coneh assured Mosley that her client would stay out of trouble while out on bail, and afterward.
"He will never commit another offense like this again," she said. "He will be paying for this for the rest of his life."
"I'm not sure people's lives ought to be hanging on Mr. Jefferson's word," Mosley said.
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