A Rock Hill teen who was 14 years old when he shot his uncle to death has been sentenced to 20 years in prison after pleading guilty as an adult.
Ka’Marion Janaz Coffey, now 15, admitted in York County adult criminal court Thursday he shot Larry Ingram Jr., 38, at Ingram’s apartment on Nov. 14, 2022. Coffey pleaded guilty to voluntary manslaughter and possession of a weapon during a violent crime.
Coffey shot his uncle four times — two in a surprise attack and twice more while his uncle was on the floor — prosecutors said.
The 15-year-old boy initially was charged as a juvenile with murder and conspiracy. Prosecutors sought to have him and three other juveniles charged i n the case tried as adults. Coffey agreed to be moved up to adult court and plead guilty, according to statements in court Thursday from Circuit Court Judge Bill McKinnon and lawyers in the case.
McKinnon accepted the plea after prosecutors and Coffey’s lawyer agreed to the negotiated plea deal to manslaughter with the 20-year sentence.
A five-year sentence for the weapon charge will run concurrent if Coffey fulfills plea deal requirements that he testify for prosecutors if asked against other teen co-defendants in the case.
The three other boys were charged as juveniles with murder and conspiracy. One of the three will serve two to four years in juvenile prison for his role in the crime. Charges remain pending against two defendants.
The killing
Coffey did not live at Ingram’s apartment near Celanese Road and I-77 in Rock Hill, but traveled there and hid in a closet in 2022, prosecutor Whitney Payne said. Coffey brought a gun with him that he took from a different adult family member, Payne said.
McKinnon, the judge, asked Payne about motive for the killing.
“Your honor that’s really a good question,” Payne said in court. ”We are really not sure.”
Officials had an early case theory about the suspects being upset over Ingram taking away Instagram privileges , but Payne said in court that Instagram posts didn’t stop. The young teens also were upset over Ingram’s discipline about noise in the apartment, according to Payne.
After another noise in the apartment before Ingram was killed Nov. 14, 2022, Ingram came out into the hallway, Payne said.
“When he (Ingram) got to the door of the boys’ room, Ka’Marion came out and shot him twice, then shot him while he was on the floor,” Payne told McKinnon.
When confronted by police, the four teens concocted a story claiming they did not know what happened. Officers charged all four with murder and conspiracy after the investigation showed the four were in the apartment and targeted Ingram, Payne said.
Coffey later admitted he was the shooter, Payne said. Police recovered the gun after the teens hid it in nearby woods, Payne said.
Coffey did not speak in court other than to tell the judge he agreed to plead guilty and accept the adult punishment.
He will remain in a juvenile jail until age 17 when he will be moved to adult prison, officials said.
Lindsey Vann, Coffey’s lawyer, said in court the guilty plea was an appropriate resolution and that Coffey accepted responsibility for his actions.
The other defendants
One of the three boys pleaded guilty Tuesday as a juvenile in York County Family Court to accessory after the fact in the homicide. He will serve two to four years in juvenile prison for his role in the crime, according to lawyers in the case.
That boy is 15 now, but was 14 at the time of the killing. He did not take part in the shooting’s planning, but agreed to the killing, Payne said.
Family Court Judge David Guyton accepted the plea.
The Herald is not naming the boy who pleaded guilty in Family Court because of his age and because he pleaded guilty as a juvenile.
The deal allows the boy who pleaded guilty Tuesday to avoid more severe adult penalties, court officials said Tuesday.
“He is given a chance to have a life,” said his lawyer, Matthew Neimec.
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