Orlando mother whose child killed woman sentenced to five years in prison

The mother of a ten-year-old who shot her neighbor during an argument was sentenced to five years in prison on Friday.

Lakrisha Isaac, 33, was convicted of manslaughter and involuntary manslaughter in the death of 41-year-old Lashun Rodgers in May 2022 after Rodgers’ family complained that the sentences were far too lenient.

The Memorial Day shooting stemmed from a post Rodgers made on social media, an affidavit states. Isaac confronted Rodgers about the post at the Mercy Drive apartment complex where they both lived.

Isaac gave her backpack, which contained a loaded gun, to her then ten-year-old daughter. An argument broke out between the two women. According to neighbors, Isaac struck first. The child eventually pulled the gun out of the backpack and shot Rodgers twice, hitting her in the head. She then reportedly shouted, “She shouldn’t have hit my mommy.”

Isaac and her daughter returned to their apartment while Rodgers lay bleeding on the floor. Neighbors called emergency services, who took Rodgers to the hospital, where she succumbed to her injuries.

The ruling comes amid a national debate about charging the parents of minors involved in gun crimes. The most famous case of this kind is that of 15-year-old school shooter Ethan Crumbley in Michigan, whose parents were convicted of manslaughter in separate trials.

Several of Rodgers’ family members spoke tearfully during Isaac’s hearing on Friday.

“My smile, my real laugh, my everyday life is gone,” said Ashia Johnson, the victim’s daughter. “So suddenly someone was taken from me for nothing, someone we gave food and popsicles to from our house.”

“I just know that circumstances would have been different if I had been there,” she said.

The terms of the sentence were agreed to in a deal with prosecutors in May. The victim’s sister, Sharetta Rodgers, said the deal was not enough for her.

“The slap on the wrist and the pat on the back that the court gave you today is not OK,” she said. “It is not OK to take a life and that is not justified. And that is not justice for Lashun Rodgers.”

The victim’s mother, Laura Chambliss, reported that she saw and spoke with her daughter the same day of the shooting.

“I received my last call from Lashun, telling me again that she loved me,” she said. “Hours later, I got a call. ‘Ms. Laura, they killed Lashun.'”

She said she could forgive Isaac and her daughter, but would never forget.

Isaac did not speak for herself during the hearing.

The judge sentenced Isaac to 128 days in jail. She must also serve three years of probation, complete a four-hour parenting class, and undergo evaluation and treatment for substance abuse.