LINN COUNTY, IOWA: A Linn County jury found a Cedar Rapids man guilty of killing his parents and sister at their northeast side home in June 2021 after six hours of deliberations. On Wednesday morning, a jury found 22-year-old Alex Jackson guilty of three counts of first-degree murder.
On March 3, he could be given a mandatory life prison sentence, as per Iowa law. The State carries a mandatory term of life imprisonment without the possibility of parole.
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On the morning of June 15, 2021, mother Melissa Jackson, father Jan Jackson, and sister Sabrina Jackson's bodies were discovered in their residence on Oak Leaf Court NE. Alexander dialed 911 and reported that an intruder had shot him and his father after breaking in. When the police arrived at the house, the two women were discovered dead, as per a report by CBS2Iowa.
Alexander Jackson had a gunshot wound on his foot that prosecutors argued was self-inflicted. Police charged Jackson with the killings after he was treated at a hospital for his foot injury.
BODYCAM: Defendant #AlexanderJackson seen on bodycam on the floor, in the hall, with a bloody footprints leading to him. His father is dead on the living room floor. Officers asked what happened, "He came down, there was a man...." pic.twitter.com/X2KgCtVbPB
— Cathy Russon (@cathyrusson) January 17, 2023
Danielle Jackson-Parsons, Alex's cousin and Jan's niece read a statement to media members after Wednesday's verdict. “Alex wanted the world to think he was a victim of this horrendous crime," Jackson-Parsons said. "But we know that is not the case, and now, everyone knows the truth of what happened that day. Alex murdered three members of our family - and that pain will never go away."
"Being able to give (the Jackson family) a moment of peace and closure after a year and a half of tragedy and hurt - I don't think that makes this verdict any easier on them - knowing that a family member killed and murdered their other family members," assistant Linn County attorney Monica Slaughter said, "but at least now, the healing process can begin."
Prosecutors said Jackson shot his family after his father told him to get a job or move out of the house. At the time, Alexander Jackson had $30 in his bank account. During closing arguments on Tuesday, First Assistant Linn County Attorney Monica Slaughter told jurors that Jackson could not give police a description of the man who he said had shot him while they struggled over a gun, The Cedar Rapids Gazette reported.
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