An Ohio man who facilitated the murder of his girlfriend three years ago will spend over two decades behind bars.
Recently, Summit County Common Pleas Court Visiting Judge Tom Teodosio handed Jaleel Sojouner, 28, a life term in prison with the possibility of parole for the shooting death of Janine Surgen. Sojourner pleaded guilty to murder with a three-year gun specification.
On July 3, 2020, around 12:45 pm, officers responded to 27th Street and Waterloo Road in Akron’s Kenmore neighborhood after reports of a shooting. Upon their arrival, they found Surgen with multiple gunshot wounds and rushed her to a nearby hospital, where she was declared dead.
Witnesses told authorities the perpetrators fled the scene in a White Kia. A couple of minutes later, officers pulled a car matching the description with the defendant in the driver seat, Thompson and another juvenile as passengers. They were immediately taken into custody.
According to Cleveland.com, 20-year-old Surgen had been walking along the street when Sojourner’s co-defendant, Calvin Thompson, who was 16 years old then, walked up to the victim and shot her in the head. Then, he shot her several more times as she lay on the ground. Investigators retrieved video footage from a neighbor’s security camera that captured the entire incident.
Authorities still don’t know the motive for the killing, but they suspect the incident had a lot to do with drugs and Sojourner’s relationship with the victim.
During the sentencing hearing, Sojourner apologized to the family and accepted responsibility for his actions that day. However, Surgen’s family refused his apology.
“God may forgive you, but I won’t. You're a cold-blooded killer — a monster. You don’t deserve the life you’ve been spared. You may not have pulled the trigger, but you put the bullets in motion. I absolutely hate you,” said the victim’s mother, Brenna Surgen, reported Akron Beacon Journal.
Sojourner will be eligible to be released after spending 18 years in prison. Likewise, Thompson was also sentenced to life and will be eligible to be released after spending 23 years behind bars.
The third co-defendant is awaiting sentencing in a juvenile court.
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