Tacoma man was killed when he went to settle a fight that wasn’t his. Now 1 is sentenced
The two young men didn’t even know each other. The argument wasn’t theirs. But when they met outside a Tacoma apartment building to settle things, Artavious Magee drew a gun, shot Lehman Charrod Tucker and kept firing as the man ran away.
Tucker, 20, never had a chance, Judge Susan Adams said at Magee’s sentencing hearing Friday in Pierce County Superior Court. It was a cruel and devastating way for anyone to die, she said, and she decided only a high-end punishment was appropriate: 13 years, four months in prison.
Adams’ ruling drew hushed cheers from the courtroom gallery where at least two dozen friends and relatives of Tucker had gathered to show support. Among them was Tucker’s mother, La Jonna Johnson, wearing a black T-shirt printed with her son’s photograph and the words, “Gone but not forgotten. Forever in our hearts.”
“The loss of a child you carried and gave life to is indescribable,” Johnson told the court before Magee was sentenced. “And in this case, losing a child to a gruesome and brutal murder that very much could have been avoided has to be, to me, incomprehensible.”
Magee, 24, pleaded guilty Nov. 1 to first-degree manslaughter for the April 18, 2023, shooting, admitting to recklessly causing Tucker’s death. Prosecutors originally charged him with two counts of second-degree murder and second-degree unlawful possession of a firearm, but the charges were amended as part of a plea agreement.
Deputy prosecuting attorney Richard Weyrich wrote in a court filing that the state was confident in its case, but specific risks were weighed including whether it could prove the defendant’s identity and the lack of self-defense beyond a reasonable doubt.
According to charging documents, the argument that led to Tucker’s death was between Audrianna Young, her ex-boyfriend and the ex’s new girlfriend. Young was reportedly angry that her ex — who was friends with Tucker — and his new girlfriend were expecting a child.
On the day of the shooting, Young’s ex and his girlfriend were hanging out at Tucker’s apartment building, 701 S. Yakima Ave. The girlfriend had been receiving Instagram messages from Young all day, she later told police. In one, Young allegedly sent a photo of herself holding a pistol with the caption, “I’m gonna lite that house up.”
Young went to the apartment with Magee, whom she later told detectives was a friend who came along for protection. Young messaged her ex’s girlfriend that she wanted to fight. According to the probable cause document, the girlfriend sent her boyfriend and Tucker to confront her, and then she heard gunshots.
Young is charged with second-degree murder in Tucker’s death. She has a plea date set for Jan. 24.
Tucker, who was known to friends by his middle name, Charrod, graduated from Spanaway Lake High School in 2020. He had a talent for wrestling, and he placed fourth in the state wrestling championship that year. He was also a father to two children.
Tucker was a people-person from an early age, Johnson said in court Friday, and he went out of his way to let others know they mattered to him, even strangers. Residents of the apartment where he was killed told Johnson about how her son always stopped and made small talk and was known to help neighbors bring in groceries.
Johnson said her son’s death devastated their family and left his younger sisters, ages 12 and 7, struggling to cope with their loss.
Tucker’s stepfather, Emanuel Johnson, told the court that every day feels empty without his son’s smile and his laugh. Tucker had a big heart for those in need, he said, and on the day of his death he made a choice to help his friend and roommate defuse a confrontation with a woman from the roommate’s past.
“That day, the defendant made a choice to arrive to that apartment with that same woman and kill my son, (who) was alone and unarmed,” Emanuel Johnson said.
Allesandra Bosmans, who had a child with Tucker, broke down in tears while she told the court about calling Tucker’s mother to tell her that her son had died.
“I swear I could hear her heart break,” Bosmans said.
She and Tucker met in 2020. He taught her how to drive, how to listen and how to love correctly, Bosmans said.
“He helped me conquer my fears, and he always had the right words to say to encourage me, especially when I felt doubtful,” Bosmans, 22, said.
Without him, she said the world feels quiet.
After the court heard testimony from two more of Tucker’s friends, Magee’s defense attorney from the Department of Assigned Counsel, Chandra Carlisle, made her sentencing recommendation. She said no amount of time would be sufficient to make up for the loss of a life, and what she was asking from the court was still over a decade in prison.
Carlisle said Magee grew up in an unstable environment, suffered abuse and was surrounded by substance abuse, leading to his own struggles with that. He has two prior felony convictions for attempted theft and possession of a stolen firearm. According to court records, he was under Department of Corrections supervision when the shooting occurred, and he had at least one other charge pending against him.
The defense attorney said there was significant evidence in the case of a lack of rational decision making and mature thought, and she said it’s known that the part of people’s brains that handles these functions doesn’t fully develop until about age 25.
“As his mother pointed out, Charrod’s death was part of an arranged fight that had nothing to do with either Artavious or Charrod,” Carlisle said. “It was a panicked response to a high-stress confrontation with an absolutely tragic outcome.”
Carlisle said none of that was an excuse for Magee’s actions, it was context for the court.
When it was Magee’s chance to speak, he told Adams he would take whatever sentence she gives him and do his time. He said he could say he was sorry, but he didn’t think anyone wanted to hear that.
“Say it anyway,” Johnson said from the gallery.
Magee turned to face the people seated behind him.
“I’m sorry,” Magee said. “I don’t take pride in killing your son. Never will I ever. I’m going to have to live with this forever, too. This is on my soul.”
After court adjourned, Johnson told The News Tribune she was grateful that Adams imposed a high-end sentence, but under the circumstances, she wishes Magee had gotten life in prison. She said she didn’t find Magee’s words to be sincere.
“I think that they really have to toughen up on the repeat offenders,” Johnson said. “I mean, some of these low sentences, we’re just seeing people just keep coming in and keep coming out. When’s it going to stop?”
