The mother of an autistic Good Samaritan who was shot dead while trying to stop a domestic abuser from beating his girlfriend is furious that he was out on bail at the time.
Devon Michael Adams, 27, was eating a sandwich in his car outside a Cub Foods in Minneapolis at 11 a.m. on March 9 last year when he heard a woman scream.
He got out of his car and walked toward Johnson Kenny Sirleaf, 34, to get him to back off, and just as he was walking away, he was shot in the chest.
Witnesses told police they heard a gunshot and then a man fell to the ground and a pickup truck sped away from the scene.
Sirleaf was eventually jailed for life without the possibility of parole on June 13.
Devon Michael Adams, 27, was shot and killed while trying to stop a domestic abuser from beating his girlfriend.
Adams was eating a sandwich in his car outside a Cub Foods in Minneapolis at 11 a.m. on March 9 last year when he heard a woman scream.
The victim’s mother, Kim Adams, wrote on Facebook after her son’s death about coming face to face with his killer in court.
“My son is a hero… He got out of his truck, left it unlocked and went to help that woman. I didn’t know them and had never seen them before,” she wrote.
‘My son is the most loving person I’ve ever met, even though he’s driven me pretty crazy over the years.
‘I had the chance to look Sirleaf straight in the eyes, the shooter looked at me and I looked at him. I looked at him the whole time, he became very nervous, agitated and shouted it a couple of times in the courtroom.
“He has a long criminal record and really shouldn’t have been on the streets at all.”
Sirleaf had six felony convictions when he shot Adams, and was charged with two more, but was out on bail.
Johnson Kenny Sirleaf, 34, shot Adams in the chest after Adams confronted him. He was out on bail for domestic violence and had six felony convictions.
Court records show Sirleaf was first convicted of trespassing in 2009 and fined $50, then jailed for nine days and placed on probation for 21 months for possession or sale of forged checks in February 2010.
He only survived until November of that year, when he was convicted of felony receiving stolen property, earning him 64 days in jail and five years probation.
A year later, he was convicted of misdemeanor robbery and firearms charges, as well as felony third-degree robbery, and was jailed for 18 months.
Sirleaf’s criminality escalated into violence immediately after his release with two convictions for first-degree aggravated robbery in December 2012 and a 67-month prison sentence.
He was allowed to serve those sentences concurrently and upon his release he committed another robbery and in June 2017 was jailed for a further 52 months.
“My son is a hero… He got out of his truck, left it unlocked and went to help that woman. I didn’t know them and had never seen them before,” wrote his mother Kim.
Adams kicks a soccer ball while playing with his sister.
When he shot Adams, he was out on four months’ bail on robbery and domestic battery charges, and had a warrant out for his arrest for missing court dates.
Those charges were not pursued after his arrest for murder and do not appear on his conviction record.
Kim said she was furious when she discovered Sirleaf was out on bail on the latter two charges, despite her lengthy criminal record.
“This has been going on for a long, long time. He should have been in prison,” she said. Alpha News this week.
‘We’re teaching these criminals that they can get away with it. They know the limit and we’re signing this saying they can do it.
“People are moving here in droves because of our great welfare system. They know the revolving door. They’re aware of all this, they’re smart. It’s amazing.”
Adam’s mother, Kim, said she was furious when she discovered Sirleaf was out on bail on the last two charges, despite his lengthy criminal record.
Kim holds a photo of her son as a child as she reminisces.
Kim said Devon was on the autism spectrum but owned a tree-trimming business and was a peacemaker who “always wanted to keep the peace.”
“Losing a child to murder changes your perspective on the world and humanity,” he told the court during sentencing.
“(Adams) reacted immediately when he saw someone was in danger. When they told me what he did, I wasn’t surprised at all. I said, ‘Of course he did it.'”
When the woman Sirleaf beat gave her testimony, she called Adams her “guardian angel.”
Sirleaf was located through analysis of surveillance footage from the Cub Foods parking lot, which shows the 2013 Buick Encore SUV leaving the scene.
He headed straight to a nearby long-stay hotel where Sirleaf and Adams happened to be staying, and the shooter stepped out.
Witnesses said they saw the car two days earlier and identified the driver as Sirleaf.
Sirleaf was picked up by a white Ford F-250 about 20 minutes later, driven by Blanyon Toe Davies, 30, who is accused of assisting Sirleaf.
Davies quickly pleaded guilty after his arrest and was instrumental in Sirleaf’s conviction by testifying against her.
Blanyon Toe Davies, 30, quickly pleaded guilty after his arrest to helping Sirleaf escape and was instrumental in Sirleaf’s conviction by testifying against her.
Prosecutors praised him for helping them without asking for anything in return and said he was “doing the right thing.”
“Everyone suffered for no reason. There was no reason for this and I couldn’t allow (Devon’s mother) to suffer,” she said.
“He’s a coward. All that tough stuff is an act.”
“What you did took a lot of courage and you did it for the right reasons. It was honorable and I want to thank you for that,” Judge Dyanna Street told him.
Davies and Kim hugged as they left court, with she calling him a “brave person” for his testimony.
He was granted parole in recognition of his help in convicting Sirleaf of first-degree murder.