Three Syracuse men get life without parole for killing couple: ‘I wish they’d had the death penalty’

Syracuse, N.Y. — The families of a young couple who were executed in their Syracuse home cried, yelled and berated three men convicted of the murders at their sentencing on Wednesday.

“Y’all some straight scumbags,” the father of the murdered woman told the men. “I wish they’d had the death penalty.”

People packed into a Syracuse courtroom Wednesday to hear the fate of three men convicted of murdering Alexis Sellin, 32, and her boyfriend, Jamie Crawford, 46, in their apartment at 3101 Burnet Ave. in 2022.

Three men — LaShawn Dixon, 47, Donnell Thornton, 30, and Jamel Weston, 49 ― were sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole, the maximum sentence they could face for a double homicide.

Judge Matthew Doran was blunt when he sentenced the men.

“There is no way that the cold record of trial can capture the depravity of what happened on August 21, 2022,” he said. ”This was an execution."

The men were convicted of six counts, including first-degree murder for the fatal shooting on Aug. 21, 2022.

A home health nurse found the couple dead and rescued a disabled 6-year-old boy who had been trapped in the home for days.

The boy, Markese Smalls Jr., was found alive, but badly dehydrated. He had been left alone, unable to get out of his bed.

Smalls, the only possible witness to the crime, couldn’t say what happened. He is blind, paraplegic and non-verbal.

The boy was brought to the sentencing in his wheelchair by Sellin’s parents to confront his mother’s killers.

Michael White, Sellin’s father, yelled at the men to look at Markese. He urged Doran to look at Markese when deciding on a sentence for the three men.

“Y’all left him in the house for four f--king days, four days, to die,” White said. “Y’all some monsters.”

Sellin’s mother, Melissa Sellin, said the three men had been terrorizing the city for years. She told the men she is aware they were known for selling drugs and bullying people.

The men’s defense attorneys objected to Sellin’s parents addressing their clients directly rather than the court.

Sellin’s mother told them to “shut up” and said they had heard enough from them over the three years the case has been pending.

Sellin’s brother, Jordan Sellin, also lobbed insults at the men.

He told the court he has wanted to die since his sister’s murder.

Crawford’s mother, Michelle Henderson, said she has also contemplated suicide since her son’s death.

She said her son used to call her every night and she would never hear his voice again.

“Everyone loved my son and these savages took him away,” Henderson said.

Crawford’s sister, Jonyshia Scruggs, told the court she couldn’t understand why anyone would hurt her brother. She said Crawford was “a genius with a heart of gold.”

Scruggs said the men “plotted, preyed on and murdered” her brother and they deserve to be “tortured for the rest of their miserable lives.”

At trial, prosecutor Alphonse Williams told the jury the three men circled around the apartment and even did a trial run into the building earlier in the night.

He said the murders were a planned execution. The jury found the circumstantial evidence was enough to convict the men.

At sentencing, the judge agreed there was enough evidence to convict the men.

The men’s defense attorneys are still pushing back. All three lead attorneys informed the court their clients intend to appeal the verdict.

Weston’s attorney, Graeme Spicer, said there was nothing connecting his client to the murders. He said that he understands the emotions involved in this case but stressed there still has to be evidence.

Dixon’s attorney, Ken Christopher, told the court he believes the jury got it wrong and the verdict was not a reflection of justice.

Dixon was the only one of the three men to address the court before sentencing.

“My heart go out to the family, I understand how they feel,” Dixon said. “At the same time, I didn’t do it.”

He spoke at length about the evidence he said was insufficient. At one time, he alleged that AI was used in the videos.

During his comments, loved ones of Sellin and Crawford chirped at him. They called him a murderer and laughed as he raged about what he said was an unfair trial.

As the tensions in the room escalated, Doran asked everyone to respect the process and to remain silent.

Thornton’s attorney, Michael Kasmarek, told the court he believes the way that the families were allowed to berate the defendants was “improper” and “unprofessional.”

Doran did not respond to Kasmarek’s comments.

Before issuing the sentence, the judge said he sympathized with the family and said he understood that the entire case was very emotional.

He said that when he reviewed the history of each defendant, it reflected “a life of crime.”

As Doran read the sentence of life without the possibility of parole, the victim’s loved ones clapped.

Before the men were led away, Doran told them he hopes they think about this for the rest of their lives.

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Jami Crawford’s obituary

Alexis “Lexi” Sellin’s obituary

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