JONESBORO — Clayton County Superior Court Judge Jewel Scott sentenced Hannah Payne to life in prison with the possibility of parole Friday morning for the 2019 fatal shooting of a man who left the scene of a crash.
Scott also sentenced Payne to an additional 13 years — eight consecutively for false imprisonment and five consecutively for possession of a firearm during the commission of a felony.
A Clayton County jury returned a guilty verdict on Dec. 13 on two counts of felony murder, one count of malice murder, one count of aggravated assault, one count of false imprisonment, and three counts of possession of a firearm during the commission of a felony.
Payne was accused of following and fatally shooting Kenneth Herring, 62, after he left the scene of a Clayton County traffic accident in 2019.
“Though this conviction will not bring Mr. Herring back, we hope his loved ones can rest easier knowing that we were able to secure justice in his name,” Clayton County District Attorney Tasha Mosley said in a written statement after the conviction. “As always, I commend my office on their tirelessly work to secure justice on behalf of all Clayton County citizens.”
According to a Clayton County DA’s Office press release issued after the conviction, on May 7, 2019, Payne pulled over and called 911 to report the traffic accident involving the victim and an 18-wheeler.
After about 20 minutes, Herring left the scene of the accident and the defendant began to follow him to record his license plate tag number.
The defendant was instructed by a 911 operator not to chase Herring, but disregarded the operator’s instructions and continued in her pursuit.
The defendant cornered the victim’s vehicle with her Jeep near Forest Parkway and Riverdale Road, blocked his movement, and then exited her car to confront Herring in an aggressive manner, the DA’s…
Read the full article here
