A Travis County jury on Friday sentenced Jason Roche to 43 years in prison for the fatal shooting of his neighbor 19-year-old Devonte Ortiz Jr. after a dispute over loud fireworks in the early morning of July 4, 2018.
The sentence in state District Judge Brenda Kennedy’s courtroom came a day after the jury concluded that Roche, 43, was not justified when shot Ortiz once in the ribs and killed him. His attorneys had argued that Roche was legally defending himself and his father when he shot Ortiz.
The jury convicted Roche of murder, relying on high quality recordings from two cell phones that Ortiz’s friends pulled out during the altercation.
The videos showed Roche engaged in a heated argument with Ortiz at Pleasant Hill Apartments in Southeast Austin, where the 19-year-old and Roche’s father lived at different units.
Roche told Ortiz and his friends to stop lighting fireworks, but when they refused, he brought a handgun and confronted them a second time. Ortiz also had a gun, but did not appear to be holding it at the time he was shot.
The altercation escalated into gunfire when Roche’s father intervened and reached for Ortiz’s throat. Ortiz shoved the man to the ground, prompting Roche to turn immediately and fire a round.
Roche’s lawyers on Friday argued that their client shot Ortiz in a sudden burst of passion, suggesting that Roche would not have pulled the trigger had he not seen his father tumble to the ground. If they’d convinced the jury, that would have reduced the sentence range from two to 20 years.
But jurors rejected the defense and instead considered a punishment of five to 99 years in prison.
Before returning the verdict, the jury heard from several of Roche’s friends who described him as a gentle giant who was very loyal to the people he loved, like his father. But they also heard about his presence on a statewide database of motorcycle gang members.
On the night of the shooting, Roche was wearing a t-shirt supporting the Bandidos Motorcycle Club, the largest bike gang in Texas. Roche’s motorcycle club is an affiliate of the Bandidos, according to prosecutors.
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