Jury: Cousins guilty of involuntary manslaughter in Taliaferro slaying
MARK GORMUS/RICHMOND TIMES-DISPATCH
Kaa Caputo, mother of Tahliek Taliaferro reacts as she leaves the Powhatan County Courthouse Mon. March 23, 2009 after hearing the verdict of involuntary manslaughter for Ethan and Joey Parrish who were found guilty in the slaying of Tahliek Taliaferro. They were charged with first degree murder.
Published: March 23, 2009
Updated: March 24, 2009
POWHATAN—A Powhatan County Circuit Court jury this afternoon found two young men guilty of involuntary manslaughter in the June 24, 2008, slaying of Tahliek Taliaferro.
Ethan Parrish, 25, and cousin Joseph “Joey” Parrish, 18, had been charged with first-degree murder in the slaying.
Outside the courtroom, Tahliek Taliaferro’s family and friends were upset. Jean Taliaferro, who raised Tahliek, said, “You don’t know what I’m going through. I cry every day.“
Powhatan County Commonwealth’s Attorney Robert Beasley said, “It was an accident that didn’t have to happen. It happened because Ethan Parrish was doing something grossly irresponsible, firing a gun down the highway.“
The jury received the case at 9:10 a.m. today and a verdict was reached just after 3 p.m. The panel reconvened shortly after 4 p.m. to determine the punishment, but court was adjourned about 6:30 p.m. and jurors were sent home. The jury will continue sentence deliberations tomorrow morning.
Ethan Parrish faces up to 10 years in prison and a fine of up to $2,500 for involuntary manslaughter, and up to one year and a $2,500 fine for assault and battery in the shooting of Courtney Jones.
Joey Parrish faces the same prison time on the involuntary manslaughter and assault and battery convictions, plus an additional sentence for being a felon in possession of a weapon. Joey Parrish, who was a juvenile at the time of the shooting, will be sentenced by Judge Thomas V. Warren.
Ethan Parrish testified that it was out of fear that he attached an 83-round clip to a semiautomatic rifle and opened fire, killing Taliaferro and injuring another youth.
Ethan Parrish said he was worried because he felt the 18-year-old Taliaferro, a popular Powhatan High School athlete, and his friends were coming after him.
Joey Parrish did not testify.
Reader Reactions
True…If Tahliek had not have followed them he would be alive today BUT if they would have never gotten the gun and just fought like kids do then he would be alive today…but (wait…one of them is not a kid and he should not have been in it, he should have known better). Or if they would have never asked him to follow them he would be alive today. There are so many ifs but those ifs did not happen so they need to be punished. Involuntary manslaughter is a slap on the wrist.
M&P… Thank you for that post because a lot of people must have missed that. It still does not cover up the fact that these boys murdered him. (I am not directing this at you I am just stating that you put up that comment). They killed him and they had every intention of doing it from the moment they got in that car and told them to follow them. And then when they saw the bb gun that gave them more ammunition (for lack of a better word) to do so. They had their minds made up to kill him and thats what they did and involuntary manslaughter is not punishment enough…especially in a “commonwealth” where someone breaks into your house and you shoot them in the back and you get charged with murder.
And to the OJ comparisons…he didn’t plead guilty these young men did. I am not saying that the young men are racist but it sure does seem like the jury is. They don’t think the life of an African american is worth anything. That verdict is ridiculous. But justice will be served one day. These men need to repent and get saved that is the only hope that they have.
You people are crazy! The young man that was minding his own business walking through the park with friends is NOTHING like this case.
How stupid to even compare it.
“I don’t know…I sort of thought that aiming a LOADED gun at a car full of people and firing any amount of rounds is pretty likely to “do some damage.“ No? I guess he didn’t need to fire them all because Tahliek, bless his soul, was already dead. RIP.“
Aiming a loaded gun just means that when you pull the trigger, the bullets go that way. The only intent stated by such an action is that he menat for the bullets to go in that direction. Why? He wanted to kill someone in the vehicle? Probably. He saw a gun and didn’t want to die so he fired first? Possible. Wanted to scared them off so they would leave him and alone and didn’t mean to fire? Not likely, but still in the realm of the possible. Wanted to kill every person that was in that car cause he was such an evil person high on pot and LSD to the point that Hollywood couldn’t make a better villain? Not using only 6 rounds out of a 83 round drum.
It doesn’t seem to be so black and white to me. It has parts that make me question how it has been presented. It makes me feel like I don’t have the whole story. It makes me wonder what REALLY happened. It doesn’t make me want to cry INJUSTICE or RACISM yet. It makes me want to look into it to find out. And everyone crying this and that only makes it more difficult to find the truth.
The only one that has a right to be crying is the family who lost a son.
Where were all of the wailing friends and neighbors when the police tried to get cooperation at the time of the shooting? Where are the NAACP and the ACLU when weekly murders are committed in the black community - so often that it has become and routine? Where are the neighbors who “saw nothing” and refused to cooperate with law enforcement in the 4 shootings that have already occured in Richmond’s black communites just this week? Why don’t the friends and family members of black defendants bother to show up in court until the media picks up the case? I’ll you: the above mentioned either refuse to cooporate with authorities or outright taunt them as they did in another case this week where two policeman were shot and lay dying. The white community in Powhatan was large, cooperative, and present before, during, and after this verdict, which had to sway the jury. I mean no disrespect to the minority of law-abiding, involved African American citizens but until the larger black community also takes responsibility, cooperates with authorities, and becomes a presence in the courtroom, there will be lopsided outcomes like this one. Is this a case of injustice for this young man and his family? Perhaps. But it should not be a surprise to anyone, least of all the black community and its high-profile leaders, who do not seem to care until the verdict is read and the cameras are on.
“Does only using 6 rounds out of an 83 round clip sound like he wanted to “Do some damage” as other posters have claimed? 6 out of 83?“
I don’t know…I sort of thought that aiming a LOADED gun at a car full of people and firing any amount of rounds is pretty likely to “do some damage.“ No? I guess he didn’t need to fire them all because Tahliek, bless his soul, was already dead. RIP.
Does only using 6 rounds out of an 83 round clip sound like he wanted to “Do some damage” as other posters have claimed? 6 out of 83?
If LAW enforcment officers had an 83 round clip how many would they have used? With the ambush and death of Bonnie Parker and Clyde Barrow they used over 120 rounds of armor piercing ammunition. And a “high” and “drugged-out” man used only 6 out of a 83 round drum from a fully automatic weapon? Sounds like something doesn’t add up.
It maybe that this was an injustice. it maybe that a man guilty of a worse crime was only convicted of a lesser crime. That was what could be PROVED. Would ANY of you like if YOU were convicted of a crime without PROOF?
I see no juror’s posting, and from my guess very few well informed people. Just a bunch of people screaming for someone’s head to pay for a horrible situation that has happened. That isn’t JUSTICE either. That is a mob.
Question it, and go find answers. Posting a bunch of hate and screams about injustice and racism without the FACTS just devalues what those words mean. Get transcripts, get information, get facts. Spreading a mob mentallity only makes SURE justice can never truly be done. It muddy’s the waters.
I CAN GAURNTEE YOU ONE THING IF THIS WAS BLACK ON BLACK IT WOULD HAVE BEEN 1ST DEGREE. SO IF THE KILLERS WASN’T RACIST THE JUROR SURE ARE RACIST. AND WHY WOULD THEY HAVE THIS TYPE OF WEAPON ANYWAY IF THEY HAD NO INTENT OF USING IT. A PROVEN FACT WE CANNOT GET A FAIR TRAIL IN VA COURT SYSTEM. MY HEART AND GOES OUT TO VICTIM FAMILY.
***I DO AGREE WITH THE PEOPLE WHO ARE COMPARING THIS CASE WITH THE BINSTEAD BECAUSE THOSE KIDS GOT LIFE PLUS 13 YRS FOR GOING OUT AND LOOKING FOR TROUBLE AND KILLING SOMEONE. THE PARRISH MIGHT HAVE NOT TRY TO ROB TALIAFERRO BUT THEY WERE OUT TO USE THAT SEMI-AUTO WEAPON.
These kids are guilty of first degree murder. If you are afraid of something or someone, you don’t go to them with a loaded weapon and the say “ooops, didn’t mean to do that but I was scared. We all know the justice system is messed up. There is no true justice, only to the ones that work within the system belive that but there are several that worked in the justice system and got out because there is no justice. I was not in the courtroom, but I can tell you that if I go out looking for someone with a weapon, it’s to use it. If there was a BB gun then why not leave and go to the police, unless you are guilty of breaking the law at that time as well. Does not matter what the skin colors are the fact is that a young boy was shot down before his life even started and two “boys” will get of jail, hopefully wiser than what they went in, but doubtful, and shoot someone else. It worked the first time so why not try it again. All I can say is that it best not be my child because you would be safer with the police than out on the streets or hiding like a “boy “ does. Punks, both are punks.
Ambell said.[You have your opinion and I am entitled to me. For you to be so insensitive is an outrage to me. How dare you say, “The defense attorney must have been paid well.“ ]
Ambell, I never said the defense was paid well just like you so many people did not hear the facts of the case so therfore how can you say justice was or was NOT served? If you we not there you do not know…...
Badger, you and Jack expect a group of high school boys to back down from a challenge by their rivals. Were you ever in high school? I’m not saying that Taliaferro’s motives were pure but he was set up for an ambush.
The murderers planned in advance and made sure that they outgunned their targets. This was cold blooded murder. You cannot say that an ambush is self defense.
FYI: I am a white man that grew up in a small town in Virginia. I thought I had seen the last of blatant injustice, I was wrong.
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