Krumm Park vigil shooting case: Tyrez Turner pleads guilty, faces potential life sentence in April

Guilty plea entered in 2024 double homicide at East Side candlelight vigil

A 20-year-old defendant has entered a guilty plea in the fatal shooting that erupted during a candlelight vigil at Krumm Park on Columbus’ East Side, a case that left two people dead and prompted a wide-ranging investigation into the gunfire that broke out in front of dozens of attendees.

In Franklin County Common Pleas Court on March 9, 2026, Judge Jeff Brown found Tyrez Turner guilty after Turner entered an Alford plea, a legal mechanism that allows a defendant to accept a conviction and sentencing while maintaining innocence. The plea resolves the case without a trial and moves it to sentencing.

What investigators say happened on June 3, 2024

The charges stem from a shooting at about 9:50 p.m. on June 3, 2024, during a vigil held in Krumm Park for 18-year-old Da’Mya Cummerlander, who had been killed in a separate shooting the day before. The park shooting resulted in the deaths of Jakwaun Kimbro, 18, and Lonnie Johnston, 29, who both died at the scene.

The incident triggered nearly 20 emergency calls, reflecting the size of the gathering and the immediate chaos as people sought help and tried to leave the area.

Charges and potential penalties

Turner was found guilty on the following counts:

• Aggravated murder
• Murder
• Tampering with evidence
• Possession of a dangerous ordnance
• Having a weapon while under disability (previously convicted felon)
• Obstructing official business

Sentencing is scheduled for April 8, 2026. The case carries a potential life sentence. The minimum sentence outlined in court proceedings is life in prison with no opportunity for parole for at least 29 years, while the maximum is life in prison without the possibility of parole.

Key evidence described in court records

Court records describe Turner and two other men—who have not been publicly identified in the same filings—going to Krumm Park the night of the shooting. Records also state that Turner’s phone location data was not trackable for a period beginning about an hour before the shooting and extending to minutes after the first 911 call.

Investigators also documented that, three days after the shooting, Turner ran from a traffic stop and discarded a handgun while fleeing. Court records state the firearm was equipped with a conversion device commonly called a “switch,” capable of making the weapon fire fully automatically, and that ballistics testing matched the gun to evidence recovered at the park.

The case now shifts from determining guilt to determining sentence, with the court set to weigh the severity of the offenses and the circumstances documented in the record.

Related case: driver’s plea still awaiting sentencing

A separate defendant, LaDavia Fortner, 32, previously pleaded guilty to two counts of involuntary manslaughter. Court records state Fortner drove Turner and others to the park and then away from the area after the shooting. Fortner had not been sentenced as of the March 9 court hearing.

Turner also entered guilty pleas in two unrelated cases, one involving a purse theft and another involving a firearm offense tied to his status as a previously convicted felon.