MEMPHIS, Tenn. (TCN) — A 27-year-old man has been sentenced to 40 years in prison after accepting a plea deal in connection with the fatal shooting of his ex-girlfriend in 2024.
On Oct. 19, 2024, 22-year-old premed student Ellie Claire Young was fatally shot in the parking lot by her ex-boyfriend after volunteering at a breast cancer walk. She was pronounced dead at the scene. The suspect was identified as Jackson Hopper, then 26, who led deputies on a high-speed chase in an attempt to avoid being apprehended. He was intercepted while driving on the wrong side of the highway into oncoming traffic.
WREG reports that on April 15, Hopper, who had previously declined to accept a deal, pleaded guilty to second-degree murder. Attorney Mark McDaniel, representing the victim’s family, said, “This spares them the additional trauma of having to get on the stand at trial and having CSI evidence that would, unfortunately, show things that they would never be able to recover from.”
CCTV footage from Shelby Farms Park, where the cancer walk took place, showed that Hopper shot Young six times in the head, WMC-TV reports. According to WHBQ, Young’s family has filed a wrongful death suit against Hopper for $10 million, stating that his family knew about his domestic violence history.
Of Young, WMC-TV reports McDaniel told the court, “Ellie was an incredible soul who made such an impact in the 22 years that she had on this earth. She was going to make an incredible physician, and the world would’ve been a better place if she was still here.”
WREG reports Hopper is still facing charges in two other counties due to the chase he led authorities on after the shooting.
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