Rock Hill teenager pleads guilty, sentenced in cousin’s shooting death.
A Rock Hill teen has been sentenced to 15 years in prison after the June 2020 shooting death of his cousin.
Jaheim Je’Tereion Douglas, 18, pleaded guilty to voluntary manslaughter and possession of a weapon during a violent crime in York County criminal court, according to court records and lawyers in the case.
Douglas shot Roddrell Harris, 28, after an argument south of Rock Hill on Wildcat Creek Road, officials said.
Douglas fled after the shooting to North Carolina, said 16th Circuit solicitors Willy Thompson and Marina Hamilton. He later turned himself in to deputies at the York County Sheriff’s Office, prosecutors said.
Douglas was originally indicted by a grand jury for murder, but the charge was reduced to voluntary manslaughter as part of a negotiated plea, Hamilton said.
“This is a senseless crime. Nothing can ever bring back Mr. Harris,” Hamilton said after court.
Manslaughter is defined under South Carolina law as the “unlawful killing of another without malice.” The sentencing range for the negotiated guilty plea to manslaughter was seven to 23 years in prison, lawyers in the case said. Prosecutors asked in court for the maximum of 23 years.
“The victim was not armed and there was no threat to the defendant,” Thompson said.
Visiting Circuit Court Judge Alex Kinlaw sentenced Douglas to 15 years.
Sixteenth Circuit Chief Public Defender B.J. Barrowclough, Douglas’ lawyer, said Douglas took responsibility for his actions.
“Jaheim Douglas is extremely remorseful for taking the life of his cousin,” Barrowclough said after court. “He has been a young man of good character and comes from a good and loving family. The court listened to all of the evidence and crafted a sentence that was fair to all sides.”
