Man who helped Young Dolph murder suspects escape escapes prison and is sentenced to probation

Jermarcus Johnson, the man who pleaded guilty last year to helping Young Dolph’s alleged killers escape Memphis, will spend no time in prison.

Instead, a judge decided he would spend the next six years on diversion, a type of probation. At the end of this diversion, the charges will be dismissed and may be expunged from his record.

During this six-year probation period, he must perform 20 hours of community service annually, continue to submit to drug testing, must not possess a firearm, must take a parenting course and must complete a vocational course.

Johnson’s sentencing came Friday morning, just over two months after his half-brother Justin Johnson was convicted of murdering the Memphis rapper.

Jermarcus Johnson pleaded guilty to three counts of accessory after the fact in June 2023. The agreement reduced his bail and he was out of custody while he awaited sentencing.

He was initially charged with conspiracy to commit first-degree murder in November 2022 and turned himself in about a week later. The charges were dropped with his plea deal.

He faced a maximum prison sentence of twelve years for additional charges.

Johnson testified in his brother’s murder trial in September.

“Given his very, very limited role, given the fact that he has no criminal record that has been confirmed by the (Tennessee Bureau of Investigation), given the fact that he testified truthfully in court … the state” and the defense would Your Honor recommends that he be sentenced to six years in prison,” Shelby County Assistant District Attorney Paul Hagerman said in court Friday.

What was Jermarcus Johnson accused of?

Prosecutors said Johnson helped one of the other men charged in connection with the murder, his half-brother Justin Johnson, hide and escape after the shooting and that he facilitated payments for Young Dolph’s murder. They also said his role was “much lesser” than that of the three other men charged in the conspiracy.

That role, prosecutors said, included Jermarcus Johnson receiving a phone and a car from Justin Johnson, although not the same one seen in surveillance camera footage of the shooting. Jermarcus Johnson is said to have helped his half-brother outsmart his probation officer during regular probation calls.

Jermarcus Johnson also pleaded guilty to facilitating telephone conversations between Justin Johnson and Cornelius Smith, the other suspected shooter.

This article originally appeared on Memphis Commercial Appeal: Young Dolph murder: Man who helped suspect escape escapes prison time