KANSAS CITY, Mo. — A 20-year-old Kansas City, Missouri man has pleaded guilty in the killing of two adults and injuring a 5-year-old child in 2022.
David Emerson pleaded guilty Wednesday in Jackson County court to two counts of second-degree murder and one count of first-degree assault.
Charges of four counts of armed criminal action and unlawful use of a weapon were dismissed.
Police were called to the shooting scene at Linwood Boulevard and Agnes Avenue on Feb. 20, 2022. The three victims were found in a car parked in a lot.
Officers said 31-year-old Ashley Pettiford and 34-year-old Jermaine Jackson were pronounced dead at the scene. Pettiford’s 5-year-old son was rushed to the hospital with critical injuries.
According to court documents, video shows Emerson leaning into the victims’ car. He then steps back and fires a gun into the car twice.
The five-year-old boy was found in the backseat of the vehicle and had been shot in the eye.
Emerson was arrested following a standoff with police near E. 59th and Norfleet Road on March 4, 2022.
A sentencing hearing is set for Oct. 5 2023.