Vice Lords Gang Member Sentenced to a Total of Forty Years in Prison

A Knox County gang member was sentenced to a total of forty years in prison today after being prosecuted by members of DA Charme Allen’s Career Gang Unit. In a trial last month, Ronald James Turner, 19, was convicted of three counts of Attempted Second Degree Murder, three counts of Employing a Firearm During the Commission of a Dangerous Felony, and three counts of Unlawful Possession of a Firearm. During the same proceeding, Assistant District Attorney TaKisha Fitzgerald showed that Turner is a member of the Vice Lords criminal street gang. At a sentencing hearing today, prosecutors argued for an enhanced sentence to run consecutive to a separate nineteen-year sentence that Turner is serving for a prior cocaine and firearm case. Judge Steve Sword agreed with prosecutors and sentenced Turner to an additional twenty-one years in prison.

During the attempted murder trial in February, ADA Fitzgerald explained to the jury that on December 10, 2014, Turner and another defendant entered an apartment on Hall of Fame Drive through a balcony door. Turner confronted the occupant of the apartment and produced a handgun. He pushed the occupant into a closet and pulled the trigger of the gun, but the firearm malfunctioned and did not fire. The victim tried to defend herself with a knife, but Turner took the knife, sliced the victim’s hand, and pistol-whipped her in the head with the firearm. He then fled through the front door while shooting at the victim and two other people in the apartment, one of whom was a three-year-old child.

In a trial last December, Fitzgerald proved that on January 3, 2015, Knoxville Police Department Officer Thomas Turner stopped a vehicle for speeding in the area of Lilac Avenue and Fern Street. The Defendant was a passenger in the vehicle. Ofc. Turner recognized Ronald Turner from previous encounters and knew that he had outstanding warrants for his arrest. When Ofc. Turner arrested the Defendant on the outstanding warrant, he discovered a loaded 9mm handgun in the Defendant’s waistband and a cigarette pack in his possession containing multiple bags of crack cocaine. In both trials, Knox County Sheriff’s Office Sergeant Tom Walker testified that Ronald Turner is a member of the Vice Lords street gang.

“If you choose gang life, this is what you should expect,” said District Attorney Allen.”My office will continue to aggressively prosecute gang members in order to keep our community safe.”

If you have any questions, please contact Sean McDermott at 865-215-2515 or Sean.McDermott@knoxcounty.org. For more information about the District Attorney’s Office, visit our website at dag.knoxcountytn.gov and follow us on Facebook and Twitter.