Brothers plead guilty to teen’s death, plus other Fayette Co. court updates
Court cases stemming from several Central Kentucky homicides moved through the court system in April as defendants pleaded guilty to crimes or received their sentence.
Developments included brothers pleading guilty to murder and manslaughter for a 2022 homicide, and another man who pleaded guilty to a fatal stabbing after a sexual encounter.
Here are updates on court cases previously covered by the Herald-Leader.
Brothers plead guilty to 19-year-old’s death
A pair of brothers pleaded guilty April 14 to the shooting death of a 19-year-old Lexington woman.
Hubert Riley, 25, and Alexander Riley, 18, were indicted for the murder of Elaina Mammen in March 2022.
In December 2022, Mammen was found suffering from multiple gunshot wounds inside a vehicle in the 3400 block of Colonnade Drive, according to court records.
The brothers fired into a vehicle that Mammen was driving at the time, according to a criminal complaint.
Two vehicles and three homes with people inside were struck by gunfire when the brothers opened fire.
Hubert Riley faces 37 years in prison after pleading guilty to murder, convicted felon in possession of a firearm, criminal mischief and five counts of wanton endangerment. He originally faced an additional charge of persistent felony offender, but the charge was dismissed.
His brother, Alexander Riley, pleaded guilty to charges of manslaughter, criminal mischief, five counts of wanton endangerment and a charge of minor in possession of a handgun. He originally faced a murder charge, but it was later amended to manslaughter.
He faces 17 years in prison.
Their sentencing is scheduled for 9 a.m. May 1.
Man sentenced for amended charges of manslaughter
A defendant who shot and killed a 31-year-old Lexington man was sentenced April 23 for amended charges.
Kyshawn Owens, 29, pleaded guilty to amended charges of second-degree manslaughter, convicted felon in possession of a handgun and persistent felony offender.
He was originally charged with murder and tampering with physical evidence in the death of Chadwick Boone in February 2024.
Owens faced 12 years for the manslaughter charge that was enhanced for being a persistent felony offender, and five years for being a convicted felon in possession of a handgun.
He was sentenced to serve the prison sentences concurrently for a term of 12 years.
Officers with the Lexington Police Department were called to a restaurant and bar on Feb. 3, 2024, where they found Boone with multiple gunshot wounds.
Boone later died at the University of Kentucky Hospital.
Surveillance cameras from the bar and multiple other businesses show Owens and Boone at the establishment before they began to argue verbally and then psychically.
Owens allegedly brandished a handgun and fired shots at Boone before he fled the scene and was picked up by a ride-share service.
Owens traveled to Reading, Ohio, a suburb of Cincinnati, where he was seen on surveillance footage disassembling a handgun before throwing it in a creek, according to police.
Local police found the handgun and traced the ballistics through the National Integrated Ballistic Network, which is designed to take firearms evidence from different scenes, analyze specific bullet markings and draw links together.
The police were able to connect the firearm back to Owens, and Lexington police were notified. From there, evidence showed Owens purchased a Greyhound bus ticket which took him to Yonkers, New York, police testified.
Man pleads guilty to fatal stabbing
A man who admitted to a fatal stabbing that killed a 53-year-old man on Bryan Avenue in October 2022 pleaded guilty earlier this month.
Don Marshall, 46, pleaded guilty to first-degree manslaughter and tampering with physical evidence. He was originally charged with murder for the death of Robert Wallace Jr.
At a preliminary hearing in November 2022, Lexington Police Detective Jeremy Adkins testified Marshall admitted to killing Wallace.
Marshall said he went to Wallace’s apartment for a sexual encounter, and the stabbing happened when he no longer wanted to have that encounter. Marshall told authorities he thought Wallace may have been armed with a knife, but it is not known if Wallance did so.
Officers found Wallace unresponsive and suffering from stab wounds at a Bryan Avenue apartment in October 2022.
Adkins said Marshall and Wallace met online on a dating app the day of the killing.
A Ring doorbell camera captured Marshall walking into Wallace’s apartment in the early morning hours of Oct. 14, 2022, according to Adkins.
Marshall went into the apartment at approximately 1:45 a.m. and left at approximately 9:08 a.m., wearing different clothes.
Marshall was the only person to enter the apartment during that time span and was alone with Wallace, according to court documents.
Three bloody knives wrapped in a cloth were found near Wallace’s body, according to Adkins.
Investigators determined Marshall attempted to clean up the scene with a mop and bleach before fleeing, according to court documents. A hat belonging to Marshall was also found inside Wallace’s apartment in a crockpot, according to Adkins.
Marshall’s sentencing is scheduled for May 5.
Woman receives conditional discharge for facilitation of murder
A woman charged in a 2022 murder that took place inside a Lexington motel was sentenced April 10, 2025, according to court documents.
Alysha Noel, 33, was charged with murder and evidence tampering in the April 2022 murder of William Ashby.
She pleaded guilty in April 2024 to amended charges of facilitation of murder, with the tampering charge expected to be dismissed, according to court documents.
Noel received conditional discharge for eight months at her sentencing.
Danny Sims, 53, also pleaded guilty to murder and tampering with physical evidence on March 20.
Police responded to the Catilina Motel on April 8, 2022, after receiving a tip that there may be a dead person in a hotel room, police said.
Officers responded and did find a body, later identified as Ashby, under a mattress and box spring with his feet bound together by duct tape.
Court documents say Noel struck Ashby several times with a metal object, and Noel stabbed and cut him.
Police also located an overdue rental car leased to Sims directly in front of the room, which had two newly purchased tarps, a roll of duct tape, and some of Noel’s belongings, according to police testimony.
Sims and Noel were on scene when police arrived and were taken to police headquarters for questioning.
Sims told police all three were in the room when Ashby and Noel got into an argument, according to police. Sims got involved in the argument, then proceeded to assault Ashby with the metal tool before Noel cut Ashby’s throat with a box cutter while he was lying on the floor, police testified previously.
Based on evidence and accounts, detectives determined the killing took place April 4, four days before police found Ashby’s body.
Sims faces up to 25 years in prison. His sentencing is scheduled for May 1.
Accomplice pleads guilty in guardian’s death
An accomplice in September 2020 homicide pleaded guilty to her involvement that left 56-year-old guardian dead.
Jessica Hoskins, 23, pleaded guilty to tampering with physical evidence and unlawful taking of a vehicle April 9.
Hoskins was charged alongside her former boyfriend, Dalton Carpenter, 24, in the death of 56-year-old Sabel Jallow, who was found in her Masterson Station home, according to Lexington police.
Carpenter pleaded guilty to murder, tampering with physical evidence, theft by unlawful taking and fraudulent use of a credit card in October 2023. He was sentenced to 26 years in prison on Dec. 7, 2023.
Jallow died of “sharp force injuries,” according to the Fayette County coroner’s office. Investigators believed Hoskins and Carpenter were in a fight with Jallow when Carpenter caused “traumatic injuries” to Jallow, killing her, according to Lexington police.
Jallow was contracted as a guardian for Hoskins, according to the Clay County Sheriff’s Office.
Hoskins’ sentencing is scheduled for May 6. She could face seven years in prison.
