Dad Executed Son Who Confessed to Molesting 3-Year-Old Daughter

There’s an understanding, if not acceptance, for a parent who retaliates against the person who hurt their children. The lines of right and wrong blur, judgment goes awry, and we feel overwhelming empathy and compassion for the parent who impulsively and perhaps rightfully avenges their loved one in the name of love and protection. While the impulse to retaliate against those who harm our loved ones is often understood, do we feel the same sympathy if a parent murders another one of their children in an act of retaliation?

Jamar Jr.'s Shocking Confession

Jamar Pinkney Sr. was the father of 15-year-old Jamar Jr. and a 3-year-old daughter. In 2016, Pickney Sr.’s new girlfriend and mother of the 3-year-old told him she believed his teen son had sexually molested their daughter. Enraged, Pinkney Sr. called his ex, Lazette Cherry, who confronted Jamar Jr. about the accusations.

Tearfully, Jamar Jr. confessed that he did sexually assault his half-sister. Lazette said her son seemed remorseful and asked if she could enroll him in therapy. Cherry relayed the information to Pinkney Sr.

The next morning, Pinkney Sr. drove to Cherry’s Highland Park duplex where Jamar Jr. lived to confront his son.

Jamar Jr. confessed:

“Daddy, I’m sorry. Can you forgive me? I got up from the couch and went into the bedroom, and I pulled my shorts and my underwear off, and I got on top of her,” Jamar Jr. said.

Pinkney Sr. flew into a rage and began beating Jamar Jr. as Lazette screamed and yelled at him to stop.

Hearing the commotion going on downstairs, Lazette’s sister, Yolanda Cherry, and her friend, LaTonya Prather, rushed down to help Jamar Jr. Yolanda made it downstairs first. Seeing Pinkney Sr. attacking Jamar Jr., Yolanda pushed him and ordered him to get off his son. LaTonya stood back in shock as  Pinkney Sr. retrieved a handgun from his waist, pointed it toward her and Yolanda, and threatened to kill them. Both women ran out the front door and called police.

Jamar Jr. Fatally Shot by His Father

Pinkney Sr. continued screaming at and beating Jamar Jr., but now he was even more enraged and had begun pistol-whipping his son as he forced him to strip down naked and out the front door.  He then forced Jamar Jr. to walk to an abandoned lot near his mom’s house.

At the lot, Pinkney Sr. ordered Jamar Jr. to get on his knees on the ground. Jamar Jr. did as told, crying and mercifully pleading for his father to forgive him and not shoot him. Jamar Jr. told his father he wanted help for what he had done to his sister and told him he loved him. Jamar Jr. screamed “NO DADDY”, as tears streamed down his face, and Pickney Sr. shot him in the back of the head.

Jamar Jr. fell to the ground, critically wounded. His father placed his gun back in his waistband as he walked to Lazette’s duplex, climbed inside his car, and drove away.

Paramedics transported Jamar Jr. to the hospital, where he died on arrival. Police apprehended Pinkney Sr. a short time later. He was charged with first-degree murder, three counts of assault with a deadly weapon, and possession of a firearm during a felony.

Pinkney Sr. admitted to shooting his son but claimed he did so in “the heat of the moment” and felt he deserved a lesser charge like voluntary manslaughter. A jury convicted him of the lesser charge of second-degree murder, three counts of assault with a deadly weapon, and possession of a firearm during the commission of a felony. He was sentenced to 37 to 80 years in prison, making him eligible for parole in 2046. He is currently incarcerated at the Handlon Correctional Facility in Ionia, MI.

Sources:

https://www.upi.com/Top_News/US/2010/04/15/Father-given-35-80-years-for-executing-son/32961271355452/

https://www.mlive.com/topic/Jamar%20Pinkney/index.html 

https://www.debbieschlussel.com/20722/in-defense-of-jamar-pinkney-sr/

https://www.courts.michigan.gov/siteassets/case-documents/uploads/opinions/final/COA/20121115_C300214_73_300214.OPN.PDF 

https://mdocweb.state.mi.us/otis2/otis2profile.aspx?mdocNumber=764811