Killer of Green Oaks’ football player Minnion Jackson sentenced to life in prison
The man who shot and killed former Green Oaks football standout Minnion Jackson was sentenced to mandatory life in prison Wednesday in the Caddo District Courtroom of District Judge Katherine Dorroh.
Kolby Moore, 24, took the life of Jackson in 2020 on I-220 near the North Market Street exit in his sister’s Nissen Sentra not long after he left football one afternoon. Moore was convicted of second-degree murder July 13.
One of the top athletes in northwest Louisiana in 2020, the 17-year-old Jackson excelled in both basketball and football where he had already earned a scholarship offer from De Anza College in Cupertino, California.
“But Minnion didn’t want to go to California,” his mother, Monique Jackson, said previously. “He wanted to stay closer to home because of family.”
MINNION'S LIFE: Green Oaks’ Minnion Jackson loved life, hated pork and expensive shoes
MINNION REMEMBERED: Green Oaks’ Minnion Jackson joins Terry Bradshaw with memorable sign
The I-220 overpass where he was killed in a hail of gunfire has since been renamed in his honor. He had dropped off several football teammates prior to the shooting.
According to a release from Caddo Parish District Attorney James Stewart, witnesses saw the car used in the shooting speed off to Bossier City and exit onto Benton Road. Police were able to obtain a license plate number from a camera and traced the vehicle to a rental agency, where a customer had a romantic relationship with Moore.
Using OnStar, officers tracked the vehicle to the 8200 block of Pines Road, within walking distance of the home of one of Moore's relatives. Officers contacted Moore there and secured a warrant to search his cell phone, which aided in tying him to the shooting.
Jackson was loved across the Green Oaks campus, located not far off Martin Luther King Drive in north Shreveport. His death caught the attention of a number of dignitaries, including Caddo Schools Superintendent Lamar Goree.
“Every night I pray God‘s grace is over our children. I pray that He protects them from evil. I pray that He protects them from being in harm’s way,” Goree posted on his Facebook page soon after the shooting. “I pray that He’s a hedge of protection around them. I truly extend my deepest condolences to the family of Green Oaks’ Minnion Jackson. Regardless of how and why this happened, this was a child’s life stolen far too soon. I pray we stop the senseless violence in our communities. I pray we allow our children to grow and blossom into the wonderful people they are destined to become.”
The sentencing stipulates that Moore must serve without the benefit of probation, parole or suspension of his sentence.
Jimmy Watson covers Louisiana sports for the USA TODAY Network. Email him at jwatson@shreveporttimes.com and follow him on Twitter @JimmyWatson6.
This article originally appeared on Shreveport Times: Killer of Green Oaks’ Minnion Jackson sentenced to life in prison
