Nearly two years after a 16-year-old was shot and killed in Gulfport, the teenager responsible for the shooting has pleaded guilty and been sentenced to prison.
Law enforcement officials announced Friday that 17-year-old Javione Martin pleaded guilty in circuit court last week to manslaughter in connection with the killing of 16-year-old Charlie “CJ” Fairley, a student-athlete at Harrison Central High School. Martin was 15 at the time of the shooting.
Harrison County sheriff’s deputies responded to a shooting on Robindale Road on Sept. 1, 2024, where they found Fairley lying in the roadway with a gunshot wound to the abdomen.
Investigators later determined the shooting stemmed from an incident the previous day in which Martin and another male allegedly stole money from a relative’s vehicle. According to statements made in court, Fairley was attempting to recover the stolen money.
Martin told the court he did not want to fight Fairley but admitted he struck him in the head with a gun, upsetting the victim.
Fairley and several friends then followed Martin to a nearby house where they believed the money was located. Martin told the court he believed Fairley had a weapon before firing the shot.
Assistant District Attorney Patti Simpson, who prosecuted the case, said there was no evidence Fairley physically assaulted Martin before the shooting. Prosecutors also stated that the other male involved in the vehicle break-ins supplied Martin with the gun used in the shooting.
During the plea hearing, Martin apologized to Fairley’s family for the pain he caused. He told the court he “accepts the consequences of my actions” and acknowledged that nothing he could do would bring Fairley back.
After accepting the guilty plea, Judge Randi Mueller said “a young life was snuffed out that day by a quick decision made.”
Before imposing the sentence, Mueller told Martin, “You still get to live. You get to have your life. You are going to have an opportunity to have a life that Mr. Fairley is not going to have.”
Mueller sentenced Martin to the maximum penalty of 20 years in the custody of the Mississippi Department of Corrections.
