Shawn Tyson, 17, gets life for killing Brits

Shawn Tyson enters the courtroom before the verdict is read in his murder trial at Sarasota County Court, March 28, 2012, in Sarasota, Fla. / AP/Sarasota Herald-Tribune

(AP) SARASOTA, Fla. - A Florida teenager received a life sentence Wednesday after a jury convicted him of first-degree murder in the shooting deaths of two young British tourists last April, a case that generated blaring tabloid headlines in the U.K. press.

Shawn Tyson, 17, sat stone-faced as the jury's verdict was read and as two friends of the victims spoke angrily about the crime. When Judge Rick De Furia asked Tyson if he wanted to say anything before being sentenced, Tyson mumbled, "No."

The verdict came after two hours of deliberations and the sentencing about an hour after the verdict. Because he is under 18, Tyson is ineligible for the death penalty and is facing a mandatory life sentence.

During the trial, witnesses testified that Tyson shot James Cooper, 25, and James Kouzaris, 24, last April 16. The two men were vacationing in Sarasota and spent an evening drinking when they got lost and walked into a housing project where Tyson lived. Details of their deaths have gripped the British news media. Tabloids there have written stories saying the men were "slaughtered" in a Florida "ghetto."

Photos released by British police authorities show James Cooper, 25, right, with friend James Kouzaris, 24, left.

/ AP/Police handout

In a statement, the families of Cooper and Kouzaris accused Tyson of being "evil," saying that they had been given "a life sentence when our sons were so brutally and needlessly taken from us. Ours is a life sentence, with no chance of parole from a broken heart, and a shattered soul."

Joe Hallett, a friend of the victims who sat through the entire trial, said the pair befriended people from different walks of life and would have tried that with Tyson, as well.

"I have to try to make you understand the pain you brought to so many people," Hallett said to Tyson. "It was through your deadly action that you've taken us all on a journey to hell. Every night before you go to sleep, every morning you wake up, I want you to think of my friends who were murdered."

During a news conference in front of the courthouse following the verdict, Hallett praised Sarasota police and municipal officials. But he criticized the U.S. government for what he said was its failure to send condolences to the victims' families.

A prosecutor also read a statement from Cooper's parents and played a video at the request of his parents. The video, which portrayed the young man from the time he was born, was also played at his funeral.

Kouzaris was from Northampton and Cooper was from Hampton Lucy, Warwick. Both were considered fun-loving world travelers by friends — but also smart and cautious. Authorities said both were drunk when they got lost and wandered just before 3 a.m. into the housing project where Tyson lived.

Witnesses testified that Tyson told them he saw two "crackers" — his phrase for white people — walking through the neighborhood and that he intended to rob them. The tourists said they didn't have any money and begged Tyson to let them go home. The men also told Tyson that they were lost.

"Since you ain't got no money, then I have something for your ass," Tyson recounted to a witness, then added that he shot the men several times.

The tourists' bodies were found shirtless on the street and their baggy pants were pulled down to their thighs. Both men still had their wallets and did in fact have money; Cooper also had a cellphone and camera in his pants pocket. Authorities later found that Kouzaris' blood alcohol level was 0.243 and Cooper's was 0.214 — well past Florida's legal limit for intoxication when driving, which is 0.08.

During closing arguments, Assistant State Attorney Ed Brodsky told the jury that the case was about "opportunities."

"For James Cooper and James Kouzaris, they had seized an opportunity to travel abroad," Brodsky said. "Shawn Tyson seized upon an opportunity to rob and kill two men."

In the end, Tyson was his own undoing. Several prosecution witnesses said Tyson told friends about the shootings in the hours after the killings, then asked friends to hide the murder weapon and bury bullets. A DNA expert said Tyson's skin cells were found on Cooper's jeans.

Tyson maintained to police that he was at home during the murders. But witnesses spotted him crawling into his window shortly after hearing gunshots.

Tyson did not testify. His attorneys called only one witness, a crime scene technician, and questioned him briefly. Defense attorneys also tried to discredit the witnesses by saying many of them had criminal records and cooperated with detectives to avoid jail time.

The defense also said no one saw Tyson shoot Cooper and Kouzaris.

Authorities say Tyson wasn't alone the night of the shooting; police have not charged the second suspect because they don't have enough evidence. That person is currently in prison on unrelated charges.

Paul Davis, another friend of the men who attended the trial, had another message for Tyson.

"You might think that being a man is about carrying a gun, but it isn't," Davis said. "The stupid thing about what you've done is that you've ended your own life."

[ILOOKHOTTERTHNU]

am i on cbs or stormfront?

[libertarian4339]

Unless you've been living in a cave, you would know that legitimate white rage over black on white assaults, murders and beatings, is being expressed throughout the entire internet.

People have been speaking out on it now for quite a long time, and the complaints are getting more volatile and intense as the attacks continue without anything being done about them.

In fact, whenever a non-black defends himself against attack by a black, those out-of-touch types like you and the MSM excoriate him unmercifully, as the Zimmerman case clearly shows.

The backlash has finally begun, and it will get even greater unless this anti-white hatred is stopped. But don't look for that to happen.

It isn't just the Black Panthers and Louis Farrakhan who are spewing vicious anti-white hatred, encouraging attacks on white people. It is a VERY LARGE percentage of the black population.

[Whiskey6633]

You liberals are such pathetic cowards. Afraid of your wonderful communist utopia is being exposed for what it is! TOTAL BS!

BLACKS KILL WHITES EVERY DAY BUT THANKS TO SCUM LIKE YOU AND THE MEDIA THE GENERAL PUBLIC DOESN'T HEAR THE TRUTH ABOUT THE SAVAGE BLACKS!

[ExcusesMakeUsWeakBeStrong]

excuses for this idiot's actions will not change what happened to those two Brit kids. Tyson knew what he was doing just did not think about it to stop himself. Excuses for his upbringing is ridiculous at best but somewhat responsible. He chose the gun, he chose to make the comments about the kids, he make the choice to shoot them, he made the choice to load his gun or heater as the ghetto calls it, he chose to try and make it like he was home, he chose to try and sneak through a window as per witnesses, he chose to ridicule the young Brit kids after killing them by making it look like an assault and embarass them by removing their clothing, he chose all this. NOT his parents, not society the lame default for all actions of the idiots out there. He knows what right and wrong is. Ask him to shoot himself and he'll say no f'ng way. Why? Ask yourself. He knows what rigth and wrong is! Simple. He is lucky, is anything he is 17. 18 would have made him available and a candidate for the death penalty.

[BronxMouse]

Exactly. As a blatino (black.latino) from NYC, I grew up in the 80s in the South Bronx with burnt out buildings, drugs, violence, black on black crime, rape, you name it. It was all around us. My parents were very hard working, taught us good values, we were part of a 2 parent family and we were taught a good work ethic. You want expensive products, such as video games or sneakers, go get a job and buy them. You don't rob "whitey" or rob our brothers and sisters. We all went to college and there were many scholarships catering to people of color, affirmative action which let me into the UofWisconsin and all these other policies that help people of color, yet STILL most inner city blacks want to keep blaming the "man" for keeping us down. Enough of this "blaming whitey" BS!! We need to start instilling in our children of color that we can do anything we put our minds to. Slavery ended over 150 years ago. It's time we move on. The likes of Sharpton will make us believe institutional racism still exists. It doesn't. Racism from regular folks does exists and sometimes some employers will discriminate, but that doesn't mean that ALL white folks are racist, yet I have encountered some vile hatred of ALL WHITES from my own kind, that is sad and counter-productive. Let's get our **** together and move on. We CAN get out of the ghetto. Hard work and staying in school, get you there. Not racism, victimology and lack of personal responsibility. Poverty breeds crime. BS! I grew up poor yet we did not end up in trouble or on drugs. I am sick of excuses too.

[obeymyra]

you think you know the story but you dont know what happen your just reading what the attorneys and policeman are predicting what happen but thats your opinion

[ZiggyZapzilla]

To bad our prisons are like the one in Brazil. They build four walls and occasionally throw a cow in over the wall.

[ImaHippyBurning]

Amen! Filthy human trash like this needs to be exterminated and his entire moronic, food stamp loving family sterilized immediately! I am so sick of all these hoodrats committing these crimes and still being able to breath. I hope people start tweeting all the home addresses of punks like this so retribution can occur! They want a race war fine! an eye for an eye.

[Ursus_Grandus]

Shawn Tyson is a heartless, soulless, psychopath. IT should be starved to death. Not completely denied food, but well below the nutritional minimum until it wastes away.

[zarnon61]

Obama conveniently forgets about the white side of him. Of course with Planet of the Apes Michelle's genes it's unlikely the white will ever get through except in the teeth and eyes.

[ILOOKHOTTERTHNU]

What does that have to do with Obama? It also seems like the tea party limbaugh and all u one drop rule racists forgot his white side too stfd.. sit the f@ck down

[PC_Gene]

@ILOOKHOTTERTHNU, pieces of feces like you don't deserve to live. Thank God your messiah, Odumbo, will be history in November and a lot of you p[eople will be put back in your place where you belong!

[zarnon61]

What in the FUG does it matter what their alcohol limit was???? They were WALKING???

And people gripe because Trayvon's drug history is brought up?

[obeymyra]

they were miles away from the so call GHETTO how dey they walk all the way to the GHETTO ever wonder that.. because i doubt that the tour book had the GHETTO tour in it ... so y dont you ask them how they got to the GHETTO

[Tommyedison]

If Obama had a son he'd look like Shawn Tyson!

[ImaHippyBurning]

If oBUMa had a son he'd look like my brown eye!

[dispunky]

The reason why this isn't such hyped news is because this guy was arrested, tried and sent to prison for the rest of his life. Zimmerman was let go, and the dead body of an unarmed teenager was drug tested and sat in a morgue unidentified for 3 days. That's why that's news, because the murderer is free.

[ZiggyZapzilla]

That's sad the parents didn't know where he was for three days. Judging from what has come out in the last few days (156 pages of twitter text & the photos). They had no control over their boy. What is it the Bible says, "A boy let out on the loose will cause his mother shame."

[Dixie_Recht]

Get your facts correct. Zimmerman was not "let go" as the case is still under investigation.

This story of slaughter was kept quiet for what reason? Indiscriminate killing of tourists by black locals isn't news? Oooppppppssssss, you'll say i'm a "racist" but am I not sung the same logic you are with respect to the Trayvon Martin incident?

[alex1163]

If he doesn't give the name of his accomplice they should hang him and unload on him while hes hanging in the wind.

[nandssmith]

This young man was charged, given a trial and sentenced to life, as he should have been. Trayvon's killer, however, has not even been arrested. That's the difference.

[alex1163]

the biggest difference is Trayvonn didn't have the gun this time. Where shawn did and used it with a grin on his face. Disgusting individuals...

[millionbaby]

He has not been arrested because the Zimmerman was trying to protect innocent people from being robbed and when he approached Trayvon, he was punched in the face. Self Defense baby. Self Defense in this country.

[pmnewt]

Another 17 year old Florida thug. This one's victims apparently did not have a gun unlike Trayvon's victim.

[honestabe8]

the one who stalked trayvon?