Cape, Charleston men arrested after shooting incident in Mississippi County

CHARLESTON, Mo. — Two people have been arrested and face charges in connection with a shooting Labor Day weekend that injured four adults at a family event in Mississippi County.

Jimarquez Johnson

Jimarquez Jauonte Johnson, 20, of Charleston and Jimierquon Jaquantay Johnson, 21, of Cape Girardeau are each charged with four counts of first-degree assault and four counts of armed criminal action occurring Sept. 5.

Jimierquon Johnson

A counsel status hearing for both is scheduled for 9:15 a.m. Wednesday in Division I Courtroom at the Mississippi Courthouse in Charleston. No bond has been set.

Mississippi County Sheriff Britton Ferrell provided details about the Sept. 5 incident as he announced the arrests Friday morning during a briefing at the Mississippi County Sheriff's Office in Charleston.

At about 9 p.m. Sept. 5, the sheriff's department received a call of shots fired during a family-friendly car show in the Wyatt/Wilson City area where the crowd was estimated at 1,000 people, Ferrell said. Five Mississippi County Sheriff's Office personnel and one Missouri State Highway Patrol trooper were present and monitoring the show when shots were fired into the crowd.

As a result of the shooting, four adults were injured, the sheriff said. All were taken to a hospital by personal vehicle. Because of privacy issues, the sheriff said he's not releasing the victims' names. He said the injuries sustained by the four include: a gunshot to the eye, forearm, back and hand.

When the shooting occurred, to maximize the efforts in locating and apprehending the suspects, the Missouri State Highway Patrol Division of Drug and Crime Control was called in to assist with the investigation.

"Due to immediate action from my deputies and the state trooper, the scene was quickly secured and car show attendees, including many small children, were safely escorted away from the scene," Ferrell said.

At the scene, 26 shell casings recovered in three calibers: 9 mm, 40 cal and .380. Four suspects were initially identified as a result of the investigation. Three were taken into custody; the fourth suspect was questioned and released.

Of the three in custody, one was a juvenile, but they have been subsequently released because of a lack of evidence, the sheriff said. The other two — Jimarquez Johnson and Jimierquon Johnson — were taken into custody.

Ferrell thanked the Highway Patrol and the other agencies that responded, which included in New Madrid and Scott counties and Charleston DPS for coordinating the effort to get everyone out of the scene safely and conduct an investigation.

"This was a family event," Ferrell said. "This was unnecessary."

Gangs and guns

The sheriff went on to address gang and gun violence in the county.

"I was elected by the people of the county to maintain security, order, safety and make sure everyone has a good time, and this happened on my watch out in the county," Ferrell said. "I didn't want it to happen, but it happened so here's where I'm at with it: It's unacceptable."

The sheriff went on to say he wished federal politicians would attend county events.

"Come down from Washington. D.C., or wherever they're staged at with their private security in a day of grandstanding for police reform just to get votes and cheering on social political movements, but while they call for defunding of police, the brave men and women are holding the line between them and anarchy. ... That's unacceptable," the sheriff said.

He also encouraged state politicians to take note of the incident.

"For the state politicians, here is a perfect example of a gun crime. With Missouri's recent campaign of 'hug-a-thug' mentality and active legislation like SAPA (Second Amendment Preservation Act), telling the criminals: 'It's OK to be bad,' while at the same time telling law enforcement we'll get fired, fined or suspended or prosecuted for protecting our communities," Ferrell said. "... That's unacceptable. ... Rethink the legislation that you're passing in Jeff City, because it's affecting real people. It's affecting real professions, and it's hurting real voters."

SAPA prohibit enforcement of some federal gun laws by local law enforcement officials.

Locally, the sheriff, said he knows the "good people" of the community are fed up with the gangs and gun violence.

"They're tired of having their community shot up, so what I'd like to see is more local politicians, local community leaders to come out to these events. I don't see you here. I don't see you at these events. Some do but most don't."

Be proactive, not reactive, Ferrell said.

"Finally, I want to address the 'little thugs' and 'gang-bangers' — that's unacceptable," the sheriff said. "You think you're hard. You think you're tough by pulling a trigger. You think you're being a man."

Ferrell said the group he's referring to are between 17 years old and 20-somethings.

"We have two little gangs in Charleston: the JBM and the NCH," Ferrell said. "JBM stands for Just 'Bout Money and NCH stands for No Chasin' Hoes. ... So you go all your life and you're gonna be a man, and that's the two best names you can come up with for your gang? That's pathetic."

He continued: "We're tired of you running down Charleston. Your family names are ruined. The good people won't talk to us because they're scared of you, but I'm letting you know right now, right here in front of God and everybody and all these witnesses, that me and my department aren't scared of you." The sheriff said his personnel have the "good people's" backs.

"I wish the 'good people' would talk to us," he said. "But by the time we're done, we're not going to put up with it."

Other county and city officials present said they were in agreement with the sheriff and city police.

"We're tired of the senseless violence in our community," said Rodney Jones, president of the Charleston NAACP. "We want this to stop. There's help. There's plenty of clergy in the city and organizations that can give you the help you need. We just want the violence to stop. It's senseless. Please stop. Seek help. We're here to help you."

Mississippi County Presiding Commissioner Jamie Conn said county commissioners stand behind the sheriff's office with whatever regulations or ordinances that need to be enacted to help.

"We're here to support the events but we're also here to support law enforcement," Charleston Ministerial Alliance President Steve Betts said. "Whatever we can do to make it better, we're going to do that."

Ferrell thanked the leaders for their support.

"As you can see, a lot of us are not happy with what's going on in this community," the sheriff said. "We've come to the point where the 'good people' have had enough so we're going to stand together. We're going to work going forward together."