Rontell D. Shelton of Stone Mountain sentenced to life for 2 shootings, one deadly, at apartment complex

DECATUR, GA—DeKalb County District Attorney Sherry Boston announces the conviction by jury trial of a Stone Mountain man charged with shooting two men in two different incidents at an apartment complex just days apart. 

On Friday, April 18, a jury found Rontell Devon Shelton, 40, guilty of Malice Murder, two counts of Felony Murder, two counts of Aggravated Assault, Possession of a Firearm by a Convicted Felon, and Possession of a Firearm During the Commission of a Felony in connection with the murder of Jordan McPherson, 28, on Dec. 30, 2019. 

The jury also found Shelton guilty of Aggravated Assault, Possession of a Firearm by a Convicted Felon, and Possession of a Firearm During the Commission of a Felony stemming from the shooting of another man at the same apartment complex on Dec. 19, 2019. 

Immediately following the guilty verdicts, DeKalb County Superior Court Judge Asha Jackson, who presided over the trial, sentence Shelton to Life Without the Possibility of Parole, plus 25 years.

According to the investigation, officers with the DeKalb County Police Department (DKPD) responded to a report of a person shot at an apartment complex in the 1000 block of South Hairston Road at around 3:30 p.m. on Dec. 19, 2019.  When officers arrived, they found a 28-year-old man lying on the ground with gunshot wounds to his arm and his abdomen.  Paramedics rushed him to Grady Memorial Hospital in critical condition.  

The victim survived the shooting and initially told police he did not want to prosecute.  However, in January 2020, the victim changed his mind and met with officers to give a statement.  He told investigators that he went to the apartment complex because his girlfriend lived there.  He found his girlfriend at a picnic table in the complex with her ex-boyfriend, later identified as Defendant Shelton.  When the man questioned his girlfriend about why Shelton was there, Shelton pulled out a gun and opened fire on him.  The victim was able to identify Shelton for police through a photo lineup. 

Just days before the man’s statement to police, officers had opened an investigation into a fatal shooting at the same apartment complex.  On December 30, 2019, DKPD officers responded at around 3:30 p.m. to another report of a person shot.  They found the victim, Jordan McPherson, with multiple gunshot wounds to the abdomen.  A woman was trying to help McPherson.  She told police that she had gone to pick McPherson up to give him a ride to work.  As McPherson walked out of the door of his apartment, his dogs got loose. 

 McPherson and the woman were trying to get the dogs back inside when one of the pets ran up to Defendant Shelton who was walking with a woman in the complex.  Shelton kicked the dog, and McPherson approached him to ask him why because the dog was being friendly.  Shelton then shot McPherson multiple times in front of the woman’s 12- and 15-year-old children.  McPherson did not survive.  

Ballistics testing showed the bullet casings recovered from both shootings came from the same gun. 

The case, assigned to the Homicide and Gang Unit, was prosecuted by Senior Assistant District Attorney Jennifer Scacco, with assistance from Senior Assistant District Attorney Reid White, District Attorney Investigator Antoine Winston, Victim Advocate Amina Abdul-Muhaymin and Victim Advocate Christy Palmer.  DeKalb County Police Department Detectives Redrick and Byars led the investigations.