After a hung jury, murder suspect pleads guilty to lesser charge, plus other court updates
Court cases stemming from several homicides in Central Kentucky moved through the court system in November as defendants received their prison sentences or changed their pleas of not-guilty.
These developments include a Lexington man at the center of a hung jury pleading guilty to a lesser charge, and two men charged with murder pleading guilty to manslaughter.
Here are updates on court cases previously covered by the Herald-Leader.
Man who faced new trial pleads guilty
A Lexington jury did not convict a 20-year-old Lexington man charged with murder at his trial in October. On Nov. 19, he waived his right to further proceedings.
Jamierion Allen was charged with the murder of 21-year-old Clinton Brown in May 2023. He pleaded guilty to an amended charge of manslaughter.
Lexington police arrested Allen shortly after being called to a shooting on Pine Street near South Limestone. Surveillance footage showed Allen aggressively approach Brown with a hand on his gun and shoot him twice after an altercation, police testified.
Allen’s phone records also placed him at the scene, according to his arrest warrant.
Allen’s trial lasted three days, and after multiple hours of deliberation, the jurors said they were unable to reach a verdict, according to court documents.
Allen pleaded guilty to the lesser charge, and was sentenced to 10 years in prison.
Sentencing upcoming for man who pleaded guilty to manslaughter
One of three men arrested for an incident that left a man dead after a beating inside a downtown parking garage pleaded guilty to an amended charge of manslaughter.
Juan Linares, 23, was charged with the murder of Michael Yocum, 36, who died in March 2022. Linares pleaded guilty in October, and was scheduled to be sentenced in November.
Humberto Saucedo-Salagado, 25; and Oziel Saucedo-Salagado, 28, have been charged with first-degree assault in connection to the fight.
Linares and the two other men confronted Yocum and Anthony True in the Victorian Square parking garage in March 2022. A fight ensued, and Yocum was shot and later died. True was beaten and survived.
Linares’ new sentencing is scheduled for Dec. 5.
Man sentenced for lesser charge related to fatal shooting
A man charged with murder was sentenced to seven years in prison after he pleaded guilty to amended charges.
James Catlett, 47, of Lexington, was charged in the death of 29-year-old Dietrich Murray who was found shot on the side of the road August 31, 2022.
Catlett pleaded guilty to a lesser charge of second-degree manslaughter in September 2024, according to court documents.
He was sentenced to serve seven years in prison at a hearing held Nov. 6, according to court documents.
According to court documents, a single spent .380 caliber shell casing was found at the scene of the shooting. Catlett was identified as a suspect and it was determined the shell casing came from a handgun that was in Catlett’s possession during a traffic stop on Sept. 1, according to an affidavit.
