Hennepin County Attorney seeks reduced sentence for convicted murderer, draws backlash
Hennepin Co. attorney wants convicted murderer’s sentence reduced
Hennepin County Attorney Mary Moriarty wants the prison sentence for a convicted murderer reduced. FOX 9’s Mike Manzoni explains why she’s calling it a miscarriage of justice, and why two candidates in the attorney's race in November are criticizing the move.
MINNEAPOLIS (FOX 9) - Hennepin County Attorney Mary Moriarty wants a court to cut a convicted murderer's life sentence, but not everyone thinks that is the right move.
What happened in 2011
What we know:
On Aug. 24, 2011, Ray'Jon Gomez, 13, was shot and killed while riding a bike through an alley in the Willard-Hay neighborhood of north Minneapolis. A 12-year-old boy was also shot but survived. Prosecutors said neither was the intended target.
Behind the shooting:
Prosecutors said Taylor and others were targeting someone from a rival gang who had shot his brother weeks earlier. Taylor did not pull the trigger – he drove the shooters to and from the scene. The two shooters, Derrick Catchings and Donquarius Copeland, who were 15 and 16 at the time, accepted plea deals and each received 34-year prison sentences.
Multiple outlets reported that Catchings died in prison in 2022.
Taylor, now 40, rejected a plea deal, went to trial, was convicted of first-degree murder and received a mandatory life sentence – more time than either shooter got for the same crime.
Moriarty's push to reduce the sentence
Moriarty's case:
Moriarty, who was not the county attorney at the time, said her office would not charge the case the same way today. In court filings, she called Taylor's life sentence "a miscarriage of justice" and asked the court to reduce it to 26 years, which would allow Taylor to get out of prison within the next several years.
While 26 years is more time than he would have served had he taken the original plea deal, it is less than what both shooters received.
Critics speak out:
Two candidates running to replace Moriarty, who is not seeking reelection, are criticizing the move. Anders Folk called it "a slap in the face to the victim and his family," while Cedrick Frazier said it could "retraumatize victims."
What's next:
The court will decide whether to reduce Taylor’s sentence.