Man found guilty of murder for Las Vegas slayings will not face death penalty
A man was found guilty of two counts of murder on Thursday in Clark County District Court stemming from a 2017 incident that also left three people hospitalized.
The jury found Clarence Wilson, 54, guilty of second-degree murder and two counts of attempted murder, court information officer Mary Ann Price confirmed. She said the verdict means Wilson cannot receive the death penalty. Sentencing is scheduled for Nov. 4.
The case remained sealed as of Thursday afternoon, but prosecutors during opening statements on Sept. 3 said Wilson shot into a townhome at 3750 E. Bonanza Rd. in December 2017, killing 50-year-old Mark Cooley and 42-year-old Tina Jackson.
The shooting happened as a family gathered for a weekly card game, according to Clark County Chief Deputy District Attorney Giancarlo Pesci. Tina Jackson’s son and his girlfriend were present, and their relationship “was not going well,” according to Pesci.
The woman had called her mother, Jawanna Chapman-Doucett, informing her that Jackson’s son had hit her and that she wanted to be picked up, prosecutors said. Pesci said Chapman-Doucett was engaged to Wilson, and the two lived together in Los Angeles.
Prosecutors said Chapman-Doucett drove to Las Vegas with Wilson and Wilson’s nephew. When they arrived at the townhome, Pesci said the three were invited in, but a fistfight ensued between the new arrivals and those inside.
Wilson left the apartment after some time and shot into the unit’s door and window, according to Pesci. Tanasi argued Wilson saw a gun pointing at him through the door of the apartment, but Pesci said a gun was not recovered at the scene.
Chapman-Doucett was charged with a count of selling, transferring or disposing of a firearm to a prohibited person and accused of transferring a gun to Wilson knowing he had previously been convicted of manslaughter in Los Angeles. But she died in 2021 and her case was dismissed, according to court records.
Contact Casey Harrison at charrison@reviewjournal.com. Follow @Casey_Harrison1 on X or @casey-harrison.bsky.social on Bluesky. Review-Journal staff writer Noble Brigham contributed to this report.
