Jerry Lee Medlock, 41, of Arnold, a prior offender, was sentenced to 13 years in prison following eight felony charges in connection with the shooting of a man he had been feuding with, according to court documents.
In July 2016, Medlock reportedly fired a gun at the victim, an Arnold man, who was shot in the chest and transported to St. Anthony’s Medical Center in south St. Louis County, where he received treatment and was later released, the probable-cause statement said.
Medlock and the victim had known each other for approximately 10 years and had been feuding for about three years, and on July 24, 2016, the two men got into a fight at an Imperial bar and both sustained minor injuries, the report said.
Three days later, on July 27, 2016, the victim was driving north on the West Outer Road near Vogel Road in Arnold, with his 19-year-old daughter in the vehicle with him, and spotted Medlock driving in the opposite direction, with another man in his vehicle, according to the report.
The victim began trying to catch up with Medlock’s vehicle, and when passing him again, spotted him and the other man allegedly flourishing guns. After that, the victim put his vehicle in reverse, turned around and began following Medlock’s vehicle, which eventually entered Lakewood Landing Drive, the report said.
As the victim turned onto the road and approached the entrance to the apartment complex, Medlock and the other man were standing outside their vehicle allegedly holding guns. After shots were fired, Medlock and the other man allegedly got back in their vehicle and left, and the victim began following them again until he realized he had been shot, the report said.
The victim then drove to the Rock Community Fire Protection District House 2 on Imperial Main Street, and an ambulance arrived there and took him to the hospital, according to the report.
His daughter was struck in the arm and back of the neck with shattered glass from the windshield when it was struck by a round, the report said.
Deputies later found five 9mm shell casings at the scene. Then, they located Medlock’s vehicle at a home in the 2200 block of Jackson Drive in Arnold and found him and another man there. They also found four guns there, two that had been reported stolen. One of the guns matched the type of casings found at the scene, according to the report.
A white, glass-like substance, which tested positive for meth, and a small amount of marijuana also were found in the home, the report said.
When deputies reviewed Medlock’s cell phone messages, they found some he left threatening to kill the victim, according to the report.
Medlock entered Alford pleas to four felony charges – first-degree assault, second-degree assault and two counts of armed criminal action. An Alford plea means a defendant does not admit to a crime but acknowledges that prosecutors have enough evidence to get a conviction.
In addition, Medlock pleaded guilty to four other felonies – unlawful possession of a firearm, receiving stolen property and two counts of possession of a controlled substance.
On April 24, Jefferson County Div. 1 Circuit Judge Carl Wesley Yates sentenced Medlock to eight 13-year prison terms – one for each of the charges. However, all the sentences will be served concurrently, or at the same time, according to court documents.
Jefferson County assistant prosecuting attorney Steven W. Jerrell handled the case.
Medlock had previous felony convictions, including two counts of possession of a controlled substance tied to incidents in July 2008 and May 2005 and one count of resisting arrest connected to an October 2005 incident, all in Jefferson County.
He is currently in the Farmington Correctional Center.