A Green Bay man was sentenced to 12 years in prison for his "part of the domino effect" that led to the fatal 2024 shooting of Brandon Ramirez.
Elijah White, 20, was sentenced to 12 years in prison, followed by 13 years on extended supervision for felony murder as party to a crime. He is the second to be sentenced out of five people who were are charged in relation to the case.
Ramirez died Aug. 9, 2024, from a gunshot wound to the head. He was dropped off at a hospital on Aug. 7, 2024, following a shooting in the 1200 block of Berner Street. Prosecutors said the shooting occurred when a drug deal turned into a robbery, according to criminal complaints.
White told investigators he was at the Berner Street house at the time of the shooting because Richardson was purchasing marijuana and "needed some backup," according to a complaint.
"This type of conduct within our community has a large ripple effect," said Wendy Lemkuil, Brown County assistant district attorney.
Lemkuil said while White was not the one who shot the gun, he was part of setting up the drug deal, knew the plan was to steal from the victim and acted as a lookout when the deal was occurring.
"Unfortunately weed and drugs in general and guns have become hand in hand lately within Brown County." Lemkuil said.
White said he was in the backyard of the house at the time of the shooting, the complaint said. He told investigators he had seen Richardson with a gun earlier in the day and that he believed Richardson got into a car with Ramirez intending to purchase marijuana and saw Ramirez pull out a gun, the complaint said.
The victim's mother, aunt and fiancée each wrote a letter, all of which were read at the sentencing.
Ramirez's fiancée was in the driver's seat when Ramirez was shot. She was sitting in the passenger seat, according to the complaint. She was pregnant at this time and "unfortunately he didn't know he was going to be a father before he was taken from us," his mother wrote.
She added she is afraid to leave her home out of fear someone is out there who wants to hurt her or their daughter.
"Brandon and I have a beautiful daughter that [he] will never get to see, be held by, or feel the love of her father," Ramirez's fiancée wrote.
Ramirez's aunt thanked White for taking a plea, so that their family did not have to repeatedly relive the details of how Brandon's life ended, "in the future, please make better friends, make better choices and find a future that includes a relationship with God," she wrote, directly addressing White.
White has undergone various evaluations from psychologists, based on the psychological testing and behavioral observations he was diagnosed with an intellectual development disorder, Tourette's syndrome, adjustment disorder and anxiety, defense attorney Nicole Morley said in court Aug. 18.
White was 18 years old when the shooting occurred. Prior to this he had no prior involvement with the criminal justice system. Morley said to their knowledge, White is the only one charged in this case who does not have any other criminal history.
"He was a teenager who was often taken advantage of due to his intellectual disabilities," Morley said at the sentencing.
A structured environment and assistance with basic life skills is something that White benefits from, Morley said, adding since White was jailed he has earned his high school diploma, thanks to the structure and mentors encouraging him.
"Elijah, a teenager, was influenced by the only individuals in his life that weren't bullying him for his disabilities," Morley said. "He clung to their friendship, and he assisted them in their plans in order to garnish their respect and their acceptance."
The defense requested a sentencing of eight years in prison followed by 10 years of extended supervision. This would allow White two years to complete cognitive behavioral therapy and two years for substance abuse treatment programming in prison. The other four years would be for time spent as punishment.
The state recommended 18 years in prison followed by 10 years of extended supervision.
White spoke at the sentencing and said he was deeply sorry to the victim's family and "heartaches I've caused in their life."
He said he grew up without many positive influences and saw things that kids should never see, leaving him traumatized. White said he began doing drugs to "numb the pain," which led him to not go to school and "hang out with the wrong people."
"But that does not justify my actions," White said.
White said he is not the same person he was two years ago, having taken part in programs since being in jail and plans to get a trade during his time in prison.
"While being incarcerated the last few years in Brown County Jail, I realized that this is not the life I want to live," White said.
Brown County Circuit Court Judge Donald Zuidmulder said White is to not associate with any of the co-defendants in this case, have no contact with the victim's family and maintain absolute sobriety.
White pleaded no contest June 19 to felony murder as a party to a crime, conspiracy to commit armed robbery, both felonies, and resisting an officer, a misdemeanor. White was originally charged with first-degree intentional homicide, but the charge was reduced to felony murder through the plea agreement.
The conspiracy to commit armed robbery charge was dropped and he was sentenced to 100 days in jail for the misdemeanor, which was concurrent with the time he has already spent in jail.
In interviews with investigators, the suspects gave differing accounts of the incident, the complaints showed.
Dion Richardson Jr., 20; Nigel White, 24; and Darian Pinchart, 20, all of Green Bay, and Rosemary Williams, 19, of Kewaunee, were charged in relation to Ramirez's death.
Pinchart was sentenced to 15 years in prison June 17, for felony murder as a party to a crime and possessing a firearm as an adjudicated delinquent, followed by 10 years on extended supervision.
Williams returns to court Aug. 24 for a status conference. White returns to court Aug. 31 for a status conference. Richardson has a sentencing hearing scheduled for Sept. 4.
At White's sentencing, Zuidmulder said, "The huge tragedy here is that we have very young people who have created a catastrophe," and the reality is "we have this drug culture" that creates a situation for these events to occur.
Kathryn Byrnes is a reporter for the Green Bay Press-Gazette. You can reach her at [email protected] or 920-431-8526.
This article originally appeared on Green Bay Press-Gazette: Green Bay man sentenced for fatal 2024 drug-deal-robbery shooting