CLAYTON, Mo. — A St. Louis County jury on Friday convicted a man of murder for shooting and killing a woman during a "female fight" over a prom party.
Emonne Dillon, 20, was convicted of second-degree murder, unlawful use of a weapon and two counts of armed criminal action in the May 2023 shooting.
Prosecutors said Dillon, then 19, shot and killed Jayla Farr in a driveway and then fired nine rounds toward a home on Halls Ferry Road where Farr and others had been fighting in the yard. The fight among the young women stemmed from disagreements over a Riverview Gardens High School prom party that was held the previous weekend.
A witness testified that Dillon shot and killed Farr, 21, after she told him to "put away the gun – this is a female fight.”
An 18-year-old woman and 14-year-old boy inside the home suffered minor injuries.
“We are often compelled to describe acts as senseless, but this was one of the most senseless killings I have ever seen," St. Louis County Prosecuting Attorney Wesley Bell said in a statement. "There is absolutely no reason why this young woman is not alive today."
A jury recommended sentences of 20 years for the murder count, seven and five years respectively for the armed criminal action counts and 15 years for the count of unlawful use of a weapon.
Dillon's sentencing is scheduled for June 21.
