2 plead guilty in shooting death of father of two at Alabaster party; 2 others still face trial
Two of four suspects have now pleaded guilty in a 2020 shooting at an Alabaster party that killed one man and critically wounded a woman.
Vontarious Dameko Brown, 27, entered his guilty plea mid-trial Thursday to manslaughter in the slaying of Rakeem “Rock” Shields and to second-degree assault in the critical wounding of Yakeisha Addy, who was left with permanent damage from a gunshot wound to the head more than two years ago.
Brown on Friday was sentenced to 15 years in prison for the manslaughter conviction. He was also sentenced to 10 years, with two years to serve, in the assault conviction, which was the maximum sentence for that charge.
As part of the plea, Brown waived the right to receive jail credit for time served in the county lockup.
In January, Anfernee Jordan Brown, 28, pleaded guilty to murder and first-degree assault. He was sentenced to 20 years in prison.
Kajuana Cassidy, 27, and Christian Thrift, 31, have not yet gone to trial.
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Rakeem Shields Vigil
Shelby County Chief Deputy District Attorney Ben Fuller said Vontarious Brown’s plea was accepted only after consultation with Shield’s family and with Addy, who was in the courtroom for the trial.
“They were in agreement as was law enforcement,’’ Fuller said. “All felt it was an appropriate resolution.
The shooting happened in the early morning hours of Sept. 20, 2020, on Old Highway 31 near 10th Avenue S.E.
Police said there were multiple shooters and dozens of shots fired.
According to court records, the suspects arrived at the party about 1:30 a.m. that Sunday, exited a vehicle and opened fire on the crowd. The motive appeared to be some kind of revenge against someone at the party but was never confirmed.
At a vigil at Buck Creek Park in the days after Shields’ death, several people spoke about Shields, with one of his relatives talking about how Shields had shielded others when the barrage of gunfire erupted at the party and described him as a protector by nature.
Shield was a graduate of Thompson High School who left behind two sons – ages 4 and 3. “He loved his family as well as his friends,’’ said his mother, Tasha Shields. “That’s what I’ll remember, the love that he had and the love that he showed.”
The slain Shields was affectionately known by most as “Rock,” a nickname his mother gave him when he was just a child.
“He was just a rock always,’’ she said. “Growing up, he was real hard. He would try anything and do anything, and he wasn’t scared of anything.”
Shields had worked at MacLean Power Systems.