A 15-year-old boy in Indiana has been sentenced to 100 years in prison for his role in a gang-related shooting that killed a woman and injured two others in 2025.
Jo’Majze Larry, of Anderson, Indiana, received the sentence on Wednesday during a hearing before Madison County Circuit Court Judge David Happe.
Larry was among four members of the Mickey Cobra Nation (MCN) gang charged with the murder of 26-year-old Dayla Swain.
Prosecutors said Swain was killed on February 2, 2025, outside Sonny Ray’s nightclub in Anderson, a suburb of Indianapolis, during what was allegedly a failed attempt to kill a witness linked to another homicide.
Two other women were also injured in the incident. One was wounded by gunfire, while another was struck by a vehicle as it fled the scene.
Larry and 19-year-old Rashawn Samuels were tried together and convicted by a jury on June 30, according to the Madison County District Attorney’s Office.
Following their convictions, both defendants admitted to an enhancement charge for being members of a criminal organisation.
Happe sentenced Larry to 50 years for Swain’s murder and an additional 50 years for the criminal organisation enhancement, bringing his total sentence to 100 years.
Samuels was sentenced to 125 years. He received 62 and a half years for Swain’s murder and another 62 and a half years for the criminal organisation enhancement.
“Indiana law recognizes that criminal organizations can pose a greater threat to public safety because they coordinate criminal activity, recruit others to participate in crime, and often commit offenses for financial gain or to further the goals of the organization,” prosecutors said in a statement.
Larry and Samuels were also convicted of attempted murder and conspiracy to commit murder.
Another defendant, 19-year-old Kyree Craver, was convicted of Swain’s murder in a separate trial earlier this year. Judge Happe sentenced him to 90 years in prison on July 9.
A fourth defendant is expected to face trial later this year.
Prosecutors said the shooting was connected to the 2023 killing of 15-year-old Jullian Craig during an attempted armed robbery.
Donavan Harris, 20, of Anderson, was convicted in June of Craig’s murder.
According to prosecutors, Craig’s killing led Larry, Samuels and other gang members to plot the murder of a witness to the case.
However, prosecutors said the plan went wrong when Swain, who was not the intended target, was shot and killed outside the nightclub.
Because Larry was 15 when the murder occurred, Indiana law allows him to seek a judicial review of his sentence without the prosecutor’s consent after serving at least 20 years.
The review provision means the teenager could eventually have his sentence reconsidered, despite the 100-year term imposed by the court.
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