MOBILE, Ala. (WALA) – A judge on Thursday sentenced a teenager to 35 years in prison for the fatal shooting of a teenager near LeFlore High School in 2021.

Larry Anderson, a retired Houston County judge brought in for sentencing after Mobile County judges recused themselves, said King Solomon Franklin was not only responsible for the death of Chavan Scruggs, but that it was done in a manner that ” leave”.

“We’re losing a generation, we’re losing a generation because of things like this … because of judgment,” he said.

Still to be determined is a defense argument that the conviction should be thrown out because the judge who presided over the trial, Charles Graddick, had a conflict of interest. Anderson gave the attorneys a month to submit additional written arguments on the issue.

Prosecutors argued that Franklin was the shooter. In June, a jury acquitted him of murder and robbery, but found him guilty of felony murder, ruling that the Mobile resident, now 19, was responsible for killing Scruggs, regardless of whether he pulled the trigger or not.

Both the defendant and the victim were teenagers at the time. Franklin was 15, while Scruggs was 16. At Thursday’s court hearing, Mobile County Assistant District Attorney Coy Morgan played surveillance video presented at the trial that showed a gunman shooting Scruggs in the back. Prosecutors claimed the motive was the robbery of a gun that fires shotgun rounds.

Morgan urged Anderson to impose the maximum sentence.

“It’s nonsensical — beyond nonsensical,” he said. “It’s hard to put into words.”

The case attracted widespread attention, a fact reiterated by the presence of law enforcement representatives at the meeting. Among them were Mobile County District Attorney Keith Blackwood and Mobile Public Safety Director Rob Lasky.

Scruggs’ mother, Nija Hill, expressed her disappointment outside the courtroom.

“I’m unhappy about it,” she said. “I wanted a life for a life. I don’t think that’s right. … He took my son’s life and he deserves to live.”

During the hearing, Hill said Franklin “made a permanent home for my son in the cemetery.” She addressed the defendant directly during her statements in court.

“King Franklin, you killed my child, my son. … You took the life of a young man who did you no wrong,” she said.

Hill noted that her son’s last words, relayed by a witness during the trial: “I would have given it to you.”

The victim’s aunt, Natasha Gaines, told the judge that the world will never know what Scruggs might have accomplished.

“I wanted you to understand what was taken from us, what was taken from society. … I didn’t know what role it would play,” she said.

Briskman urged the judge to focus on the other two people who were present during the crime – people who were never charged. He noted that the jury found his client guilty of felony murder.

“I take that, as a defense attorney, as the jury understanding who the trigger was,” he said.

Briskman told FOX10 News it’s a tragic situation, but he’s relieved his client will at least have a chance at rehabilitation.

“The fact that he has a light at the end of the tunnel, so to speak, is a positive thing for him,” he said. “So we’re not disappointed, although certainly a 35-year sentence is not something you jump up and down about.”

In court, Briskman pointed to a 2021 psychiatric evaluation of his client at the Strickland Youth Center, which concluded he had the mental abilities of a child under 12, with an IQ between 69 and 81. He asked Anderson to – sentences Franklin to 20 years. minimum of a year.

“There should be a way for Mr. Franklin to rehabilitate himself,” he said.

The judge did not immediately rule on Briskman’s argument that the conviction should be thrown out based on the conflict of interest issue. This is based on the fact that Graddick was doing legal work for the city of Mobile’s Office of Professional Responsibility while also presiding over criminal cases involving the Mobile police as a retired, part-time judge.

Mobile County Presiding Circuit Judge Wesley Pipes announced in August that Graddick would no longer perform judicial duties. One of Graddick’s cases was Franklin’s trial.

“Mr. Franklin is entitled to a fair and impartial tribunal,” Briskman said.

Mobile County Assistant District Attorney Louis Walker countered that higher courts have ruled that a defendant is guaranteed a “fair” trial, not a “perfect” one.

Anderson asked Briskman if he could point to certain Graddick rulings that were biased against his client. He responded that he raised “numerous evidentiary objections” during the trial. Anderson pointed out that Graddick denied some of them and supported others.

The judge gave Briskman 30 days to submit written arguments. The prosecutor’s office will have 10 days to respond to it.

Blackwood said the 35-year prison sentence was “another tough sentence” that would require Franklin to serve at least 15 years before he would be eligible for parole — the same time he would have been expected to wait if the sentence had been for life.

As for the conflict issue, Blackwood said he is confident the conviction will stand.

“Our position is that the defendant absolutely received a fair trial,” he said. “It is absolutely clear in the record from all of Judge Graddick’s rulings. Judge Graddick has never been anything but a fair judge to all parties.”

Updated at 5:40 p.m. with additional comments and information related to the defendant’s request for a new trial.

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