Jackson man convicted of 3 murders and sentenced to life without parole – WNWS Radio

From – Jody Pickens, District Attorney General, 26^th Judicial district –

On September 25, 2019, officers with the Jackson Police Department (“JPD”) responded to a shooting call near the intersection of Middleton and Neff Street in Jackson, Tennessee, where a Nissan Sentra had crashed into the sidewalk and embankment. Police found an unconscious victim in the driver's seat with a gunshot wound to the head. Another victim with similar gunshot wounds fled the vehicle and was found by police nearby. The second victim survived his injuries and identified Keenan Antonio Murphy, 21, of Jackson, as the person who shot him and the driver while Murphy was seated in the back of the vehicle. Officers searched the area for a suspect, but Murphy was not located at that time. The driver later died from his injuries.

On September 28, 2019, a concerned local mother filed a missing person report with JPD because her son had not responded to any of her calls or texts in the past twenty-four (24) hours. A search began for the missing young man, but at the time efforts were unsuccessful. The last person seen with the victim alive was Keenan Murphy as they both drove away from 32 Greenview Drive in the victim's vehicle.

On October 4, 2019, JPD officers responded to a call at 55 Wyndelake Cove in Jackson regarding another shooting. They located a white Crown Victoria near the intersection of Fairway Blvd. and Winding Creek. As during the first shooting, the police found a driver dead with a gunshot wound to the head. A second gunshot victim, injured in the back and hand, survived the incident and fled the scene. The second victim identified Murphy as the person who shot him and the driver from the rear of the vehicle. The surviving victim provided a description of Murphy and officers began searching the area for him.

Officers spotted Murphy later that morning walking near North Highland Avenue and Old Humboldt Road. Murphy was arrested wearing clothing matching the witnesses' descriptions. Officers recovered a .40 caliber Glock handgun with the slide locked from Murphy’s person.

Investigators questioned Murphy and he admitted to the September 25 and October 4 shootings, stating that he shot the individuals as they sat in the back of the cars, as the surviving victims had said. Murphy also confirmed that he was the only person to possess this firearm from September 25 to October 4, 2019. Murphy's confession was corroborated by a forensic examination of his firearm and shell casings found during both shootings. Microscopic examination led to the conclusion that the weapon had been used in both shootings.

On June 1, 2020, a Madison County grand jury indicted Keenan Antonio Murphy in two separate cases for the September 25 and October 4, 2019, shootings. In each case, the grand jury indicted Murphy for first-degree murder, attempted of first degree murder, aggravated circumstances. Assault and use of a firearm in the commission of a dangerous crime.

On August 29, 2021, a concerned Jackson citizen called police after discovering a submerged vehicle in a community pond in the Howeston Mill subdivision. A team of divers recovered the vehicle from the pond.

There, investigators found the remains of the young man reported missing by his mother on September 28, 2019. Officers also found several .40 caliber shell casings inside the vehicle. A forensic firearms expert compared the shell casings to Murphy's gun and confirmed they also came from the same gun.

On December 15, 2021, the State of Tennessee, represented by Assistant Prosecutors Bradley Champine and Alfred Earls, tried Keenan Murphy before a jury for the September 2019 murder.

Murphy invoked a “diminished capacity” defense at trial, relying on expert testimony to argue that he committed the shooting because he was suffering from a “manic episode” and, therefore, did not He didn't have the ability to premeditate. On December 17, 2021, the jury found Murphy guilty on all counts. On February 23, 2022, Murphy was sentenced to life in prison for the victim who succumbed to his injuries, plus twenty-six (26) years of consecutive prison time for the attempted murder of the second victim.

On February 28, 2022, the Madison County grand jury returned a final indictment against Keenan Antonio Murphy, this time for first-degree murder in the September 2019 death of the missing man.

On May 29, 2024, Keenan Murphy entered pleas to the remaining indictments. Pursuant to the plea agreement, the court sentenced him to life without parole and remanded him to the Tennessee Department of Corrections for the remainder of his natural life.

“No sentence can repair or replace what these families have lost,” said prosecutor Jody Pickens. “But we take comfort in knowing that this killer will never breathe the air of a free man again.” Thanks to the hard and deliberate work of General Earls, General Champine and the Jackson Police Department, a killer was removed from our community for the rest of his life.

“I thank the Jackson Police Department, and all of our law enforcement partners, for the tireless work they have done in this case and for the work they do every day investigating violent crimes and other serious crimes in our community.”