YORK, Pa. — A York man whose unusual request of the judge presiding over his murder trial made headlines earlier this month was found guilty of first-degree homicide in a deadly 2014 shooting in the city.
Kashawn Flowers, 25, was convicted last week in the shooting death of Hezekiah Walker, York County District Attorney Dave Sunday confirmed this week.
Flowers, who was a member of the Southside gang at the time, killed Walker in retaliation for the 2013 shooting death of a Southside gang member by a member of the West Side gang. Walker was not involved with the West Side gang, authorities say.
Sunday said Flowers faces a mandatory sentence of life in prison. A sentencing hearing is scheduled for November 29.
Flowers made headlines earlier this month when he asked York County Judge Harry Ness if he would officiate Flowers' wedding ceremony.
Ness did not outright deny the request, but said it would have to wait until Flowers' trial was over.
There was no update on whether Ness would perform the ceremony after Flowers was found guilty.
Flowers was accused of shooting and killing Walker on August 18, 2014, as Walker walked down the 300 block of West King Street.
Flowers spoke with associates following the shooting, which police learned about via recorded statements.
“Flowers advised that he saw the victim walking alone and asked him what side he was from and the victim eventually said he (was) from out west,” York City Detective Anthony Fetrow wrote in the criminal complaint when Flowers was arrested. “The associate knew about the beef between the South Side and the West Side. Flowers admitted to shooting the victim in the head and said he was happy about it.”
Police say they found a smartphone on the seat of a vehicle that had just crashed into a residence in the 200 block of Grantley Street following a shootout. Search warrants revealed that the phone belonged to Flowers as well as an estimated location during the shooting three days prior.
“Just minutes before the homicide and for several minutes after, (Flowers’) cellphone hits off cell towers located at 48 East Market Street and 386 Kings Mill Road, which are the closest cell towers to the homicide scene,” Detective Fetrow also wrote.
