JACKSON, Miss. — It took two years, but at last, Jimmy Johnson’s murderer has been sentenced for his crimes.
Shaun Brown, only 17 at the time, was caught burglarizing Johnson’s boat in the parking lot of the Motel 6 where Johnson was staying. When Johnson caught him, Brown’s reaction was to shoot Johnson in the face, killing him instantly.
Brown confessed a few days after the shooting, then retracted his statement. He was originally charged with capital murder, according to WAPT News, but on Nov. 16, 2015, he pleaded guilty instead to second-degree murder. His sentence is 25 years.
Johnson was 56. By the time Brown is 56, he will have already been out of prison for 12 years.
Johnson is survived by his wife, Mona.
“He loved life,” Mona told Texas TV station KAVU back in 2013. “He loved fishing. He loved his family. He loved his friends.”
The fishing world loved him, too, and even though he’s been gone for two years, he still lives on in the hearts of those who knew him.