SAN DIEGO (CNS) - A man who fatally shot another man during a confrontation in East Village was sentenced Friday to 10 years in state prison.
Dajon Shingleton, 22, was initially charged with murder for the Jan. 20, 2023, shooting death of 29-year-old John Reed, but a San Diego jury found him guilty instead of voluntary manslaughter, plus a gun allegation.
Police said the shooting unfolded just before 4:30 a.m. Responding officers found the victim down on the sidewalk near the intersection of Seventh Avenue and K Street. He died at the scene.
Further investigation revealed Reed got into an argument with Shingleton and others near 600 L St. and at some point, Shingleton pulled out a gun and shot Reed, then fled the scene.
Shingleton was arrested one day after the shooting at a residence in Spring Valley.
Deputy Public Defender Brianne Murphy argued at Friday's sentencing hearing that Shingleton was "approached by a strange man aggressively," who refused to leave and was confrontational.
Though Reed was not armed with a gun, Murphy argued he had a skateboard that could have been used as a weapon, plus a backpack, the contents of which were unknown to Shingleton.
San Diego Superior Court Judge Daniel Goldstein agreed that Shingleton was confronted by Reed, who he said "engaged in assaultive conduct towards the defendant" and his group. But Goldstein said the men were far enough apart from one another that Reed "did not pose an ongoing threat to the defendant."
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