Anthony Graves found guilty for the 2012 shooting death of Deaudre Johnson in Douglass Park

On Wednesday, a Columbia man was found guilty in the death of a teenager in 2012.

The jury recommended Anthony Graves receive a life sentence of 30 years for the murder, and another 20 years for armed criminal action.

The formal sentencing will now be up to a judge in a few weeks.

Graves, 20, was found guilty of shooting Deaudre Johnson, 17, last spring. Johnson was shot in the chest across the street from Douglass Park.

According to court documents, Johnson was not the intended target.

On Wednesday Graves took the stand and admitted to shooting into the crowd twice in the March of 2012, claiming he thought he saw a gun.

After the trial the prosecution said they were happy to see Graves found guilty of the crime. They, along with Johnson’s family, said violence like this will not go without punishment in Columbia.

On Monday, charges against Graves were reduced. Prosecutors accused him of firing a gun from a car, a step down from the initial charge of shooting at a specific person.

On Wednesday, a jury found Graves guilty of second-degree murder, armed criminal action, and unlawful use of a weapon.