Two Charlotte teenagers have admitted roles in the killing of 19-year-old Jaquad Malik Pearson in a NAPA Auto Parts parking lot on Brookshire Boulevard, and both are now headed to prison for years. Court records and local reporting show one teen pleaded guilty to second-degree murder while the other accepted firearm-related charges tied to the drive-up attack.
According to Charlotte Alerts News, 18-year-old Josiah Smalls entered guilty pleas last Friday to second-degree murder and to conspiracy to discharge a weapon into a vehicle in operation. The outlet reports that a judge sentenced Smalls to a term of 125 to 162 months in prison.
The shooting
The fatal shooting unfolded in mid-January 2025, when Pearson was sitting in a red Dodge Charger around 8 p.m. in the NAPA Auto Parts lot along Brookshire Boulevard near Oakdale Road, according to WBTV. Multiple shots hit Pearson, and he was pronounced dead at the scene…