Page 46 - 5-15-15 Friday's Edition

Crime
Men Linked To Church Convicted On Drug Charges
Federal authorities are preparing to sentence the sons of a pair of prominent Tampa pastors on drug traf- ficking charges.
Marvin Jefferson, 47, Shannon Jefferson, 33, and Jimmy Lanier, 37, have been adjudicated guilty of drug trafficking after they entered pleas in June 2014.
The three men are the sons of Bishop Melvin B. Jef- ferson and his wife, Brenda Lanier Jefferson of Deeper Life Christian Church.
Authorities said Lanier was the leader of a drug traf- ficking organization that brought cocaine from Texas to Tampa. He could be facing life in prison when he’s sen- tenced on August 12th.
MARVIN JEFFERSON ...freed from jail
Marvin Jefferson, who was facing 10 years, left a free man Wednesday from court because he helped authorities with their cases against his brothers.
SHANNON JEFFERSON ...awaiting sentencing
According to court records, Lanier conspired to traffic narcotics from 2002 to 2013.
A prosecutor said Lanier had left Marvin Jefferson for dead after a shooting in a
JIMMY LANIER ...awaiting sentencing
2007 drug deal in Dallas. The brothers were trying to buy 10 kilograms of cocaine and were robbed of $100,000.
Reports said Shannon Jefferson had flown to
Houston to perform at a con- ference after his arrest in 2013. Lanier got permission from the court to attend a re- ligious service last week with his family in California.
Marvin Jefferson had been ordained as a minister, but now works as a cook.
A judge rewarded Marvin Jefferson for helping prose- cutors and getting his life back together. He was sen- tenced to time served.
Bishop Jefferson’s min- istry has grown through his reaching out to drug addicts and others by bringing them into the church, helping them get stabilized, then providing them housing and clothing, while also providing three- meals-a-day for anyone who walks through their doors.
No Charges For Officer
Who Killed Tony Robinson
MADISON, Wis. — A white Wisconsin police officer won’t face criminal charges for fatally shooting an unarmed 19-year-old bira- cial man whom witnesses say was acting erratically and had as- saulted two people, a prosecutor announced Tuesday.
Dane County District Atty. Ismael Ozanne, who is biracial but identifies as Black, said he won’t file charges against Madison Officer Matt Kenny in the death of Tony Robinson. Kenny shot Robinson on March 6 in an apartment house near the state Capitol building. Police said Kenny was responding to calls that Robinson was running in and out of traffic and had assaulted two people. They said Robinson attacked the officer after he entered the apartment house.
The city’s Black community mounted daily rallies for a week after the shooting. The protests were peaceful, although demon- strators demanded Kenny be fired and charged with homicide.
The state Department of Justice investigated the shooting under a state law that requires outside agencies to lead probes into offi- cer-involved deaths. The state agency handed over its findings to Ozanne on March 27.
PAGE 22-A FLORIDA SENTINEL BULLETIN PUBLISHED EVERY TUESDAY AND FRIDAY FRIDAY, MAY 15, 2015