Judge sentences teenager to 22 years for fatally shooting man in NE Minneapolis

Younger teen charged in the killing could have his case moved to adult court Tuesday.

July 8, 2020 at 1:14AM
Steven Markey worked as an office assistant in Minneapolis at the time of his death in June 2019.
Steven Markey worked as an office assistant in Minneapolis at the time of his death in June 2019. (The Minnesota Star Tribune)

A Hennepin County judge sentenced a teenager to nearly 22 years in prison and supervised release for fatally shooting a man he and another teen targeted for robbery in northeast Minneapolis.

Jered Ohsman, 17, of Coon Rapids, was sentenced in adult court Monday by Hennepin County District Judge Kathryn Quaintance in connection with the killing on June 11, 2019, of Steven Markey, 39, of Plymouth.

Ohsman pleaded guilty in March to second-degree murder. With credit for time in jail since his arrest, Ohsman will serve the first 13¾ years in prison and the balance on supervised release.

A boy who was 15 at the time of the killing also was charged in connection with the crime. A hearing was scheduled for Tuesday to determine whether his case should be moved to adult court.

Markey worked as an office assistant in Minneapolis at the time of his death. Jerry Markey said his son grew up in Maple Grove, graduated from Osseo High School and earned a political science degree from the University of Minnesota.

According to prosecutors:

About 4:50 p.m. that day, Markey was parked near the intersection of 14th Avenue and NE. Tyler Street. The teens decided to rob him and steal his car.

Both drew semi-automatic pistols and had bandannas over their faces as they approached the car. Ohsman told police he ordered Markey out of the vehicle and shot him after seeing him reach for something. The 15-year-old told police that Ohsman fired because Markey had laughed at them. The bleeding Markey drove off on Central Avenue and struck a building barely a block away.

That night, an SUV was stolen from 28th Street in St. Louis Park.

At 2:25 a.m., New Hope police were called to a cellphone store where a burglary was in progress. Officers saw someone dressed in black run from the business and jump into the front passenger side of the stolen SUV.

The vehicle sped off, and police pursued. About a mile later, the SUV turned onto the ramp for northbound Hwy. 169, but the driver lost control and crashed through a chain-link fence. Both teens were arrested.

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Paul Walsh

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Paul Walsh is a general assignment reporter at the Minnesota Star Tribune. He wants your news tips, especially in and near Minnesota.

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