Although sentenced in Shelby County, Jackson Hopper still faces charges in Tipton, Lauderdale and Dyer County after leading cops on a chase after the shooting
NEED TO KNOW
- Jackson Hopper pleaded guilty to second-degree murder, avoiding a trial and receiving a 40-year prison sentence
- The plea deal was made in cooperation with the family of his ex-girlfriend, Ellie Claire Young, whom he shot and killed during a Tennessee charity walk
- Hopper still faces additional charges from a police chase following the 2024 shooting
Jackson Hopper, who is accused of shooting and killing his ex-girlfriend Ellie Claire Young during a 2024 cancer charity walk in Tennessee, has accepted a plea deal.
The 27-year-old had previously been charged with first-degree murder, court records reviewed by PEOPLE show. Hopper pleaded guilty to the lesser charge of second-degree murder on Wednesday, April 15, avoiding a trial that was set to start in July, per the court records.
As part of the plea deal, Hopper was sentenced to 40 years in prison. The decision was made in cooperation with Young's family, ABC 24 Memphis reported.
Credit: GoFundMe
Hopper previously declined a plea deal in February, according to Action News 5.
“I only accept it so that now, you can begin to heal,” Judge Carlyn Addison told Young’s family, according to Action News 5.
"When you first came to this court, I asked you for grace, I asked you for patience, and I told you I am so deeply sorry for your loss," Addison continued. "I told you I’m happy for you to be here, but I hate that you’re here, and I do this for you so that you can leave this building never to return. So that maybe you can get some rest, and maybe you can continue to honor your loved one.”
Credit: GoFundMe
"Today’s resolution allows them [the family] to move on. We ask that you continue to give them their privacy," Young’s family attorney Mark S. McDaniel Jr., said after the court appearance, per Action News 5.
"After 49 years of practicing law, it never gets easy," Hopper's defense attorney, Leslie Ballin, said after the proceedings, according to Action News 5. "Cases like this… It’s tragic, tragic… and if we could turn back the hands of time, this would be a case that you would want to turn back the hands of time on."
As previously reported by PEOPLE, citing an affidavit of complaint, on Oct. 19, 2024, at 12:15 p.m., Young, who was 22 at the time, was found lying on the ground near her Jeep Wrangler, suffering from multiple gunshot wounds at the parking lot of the Shelby Farms Visitor’s Center in Memphis.
According to the affidavit, Hopper pulled up behind her Jeep, firing two shots in the back of it.
Credit: GoFundMe
When she got out of the vehicle, Hopper “fired at least one more shot into the victim as she lay on the ground,” the affidavit alleges.
Young, who had recently broken up with Hopper, was there for the American Cancer Society’s “Making Strides against Breast Cancer” walk and was pronounced dead at 12:36 p.m., local time.
After the incident, Hooper took off in his vehicle and was located in Mason, Tenn., starting a police chase, where Hopper allegedly tried to run over a Tipton County constable who was putting down stop sticks before attempting to run over a deputy in Dyer County, ABC 24 reported.
Credit: Shelby County Sheriff’s Office
Hopper is still facing charges in Tipton, Lauderdale and Dyer County, due to the chase. The charges include aggravated assault, evading arrest, reckless endangerment, reckless driving, speeding, and assault on a first responder.
Young's family has also filed a wrongful death suit against Hopper, court records reviewed by PEOPLE show.
The civil suit, in which Young's family asks for $10 million in damages and “punitive damages in an appropriate amount to be determined by a jury," had been on a stay order until Hopper's criminal case was over, according to ABC 24 Memphis.
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PEOPLE has reached out to Ballin and McDaniel Jr. for comment.
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