Gulfport men plead guilty in 2022 shooting at Emerald Pines Apartments

Gulfport, Mississippi – District Attorney W. Crosby Parker announced today that 20-year-old Jamicheal Naylor, and 18-year-old Andrew Dunnigan, both of Gulfport, pled guilty late Monday to shooting and killing twenty-nine-year-old Trevor Walker on May 18, 2022.

The case, being prosecuted by Assistant District Attorneys Patti Simpson and Ian Baker, was set to begin trial on Tuesday; however, Dunnigan and Naylor, entered a guilty plea late Monday to second-degree murder in front of Circuit Court Judge Christopher Schmidt.

After accepting the guilty pleas, Judge Schmidt sentenced each defendant to serve 28 years in the custody of the Mississippi Department of Corrections.

During the plea hearing, Dunnigan and Naylor, said that they had an ongoing dispute with Walker over “gang stuff,” and had been threatened by Walker on previous occasions.

The pair further admitted that on May 18, 2022, they were told that Walker was coming in the gate of Emerald Pines, “so they took off running toward him with their guns drawn, and when they rounded the corner of a building (at the apartment complex), they ran into Walker and shot.”

“Walker was shot in the chest, left thigh, and left wrist, and succumbed to his injuries within minutes,” said ADA Patti Simpson. “The shooting was captured on video and would have been the State’s key piece of evidence had the case proceeded to trial,” said ADA Ian Baker.

After hearing from both the State and defense regarding sentencing, Judge Schmidt said, “both the Court and the State are confronted yet again with the loss of life by young people with guns, who don’t take time to appreciate the gift of life that we are all given, coupled with the minimizing of the value of life that seems to be rampant in our society.”

Judge Schmidt then told Dunnigan and Naylor, who were ages 18 and 16 at the time of the shooting, “it was not in your hands to decide if Mr. Walker should live or die, and taking into consideration the nature and circumstances of the crime and your youthful status at the time, I sentence you each to 28 years in the custody of the Mississippi Department of Corrections.”

Second Degree Murder is a day-forday crime, so Dunnigan and Naylor will be required to serve the entire 28-year-sentence without the possibility of parole or early release.

District Attorney Crosby Parker said, “yet again we are plagued with the loss of one young life to gun violence, and the reality of two teens who will spend the majority of the next three decades behind bars. We as a community must take an active role in teaching young people the value of life, and the importance of settling disputes without violence.”