Guilty of 1st Degree Murder, Jury Says, Of Defendant Vinson in Melody Ross Shooting

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(Sept. 12, 2011) -- A jury today today found Tom Love Vinson, now 18, guilty of 1st degree murder in a gang shooting that killed 16 year old Melody Ross on Ximeno Ave. outside the Oct. 2009 Wilson High School homecoming football game.

An LBPD release says the jury deliberated three days before also finding Vinson guilty of two counts of attempted murder and one count of attempted voluntary manslaughte. The jury also found true the special allegations that Vinson personally and intentionally discharged a handgun and that he committed the crimes to further a street gang.

[DA release text] The jury found Vinson not guilty of a fourth count of attempted murder of a female student who was in the crowd but not struck by gunfire.

Vinson, who was 16 at the time of the shooting, was convicted of opening fire on a group of students about 10 p.m. on Oct. 30, 2009. Ross was an innocent bystander. Two men, ages 18 and 20 at the time, were wounded.

Deputy District Attorney Dean Bengston with the Hardcore Gang Division.said Vinson now faces more than 155 years to life in state prison when he returns for sentencing on Oct. 25 before Judge Mark Kim.

The second teenager charged in the case, Daivion Davis, was sentenced today [Sept. 12] to eight years, four months in juvenile custody, Bengston said. Davis, who was almost 16 at the time of the shooting and is now 17, pleaded no contest in July to one count each of manslaughter and attempted murder.

Ms. Ross, 16, was struck by gunfire on Ximeno Ave. between 7th and 10th Sts. alongside the school.

LBPD said she was an innocent bystander when two groups of gang members had a confrontation outside the school. Two men, ages 18 and 20 at the time, were wounded.

In May 2010, two teenage girls (Wilson High School students) pleaded guilty to witness intimidation in the criminal proceedings; they were sentcned to 30 days of house arrest and placed on probation until they're 21.

Ross familymembers fled Cambodia's "Killing Fields" and settled in Long Beach. They'd recently moved from Central Long Beach to North Long Beach in search of a safer neighborhood.

Some familymembers have filed a civil suit on behalf of the Estate of Melody Ross against the LB Unified School District and the City of Long Beach.

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