The trial of the man charged in the deadly shooting of an 8-year-old girl who was riding in an SUV with her mother began Monday morning in Atlanta.

Julian Turner is facing murder, aggravated assault and other gun and gang-related charges in the 2020 killing of Secoriea Turner.

The beginning of the trial comes days after a second man, Jerrion McKinney, was sentenced to 20 years in prison after pleading guilty to aggravated assault and other charges connected with Turner's death. 

Jury selection started shortly after 9 a.m. in Fulton County Superior Court.

The killing of Secoriea Turner

Secoriea was riding in the back of a Jeep with her mother and her mother's friend on July 4, 2020, near the Atlanta Wendy's restaurant where Rayshard Brooks, a 27-year-old Black man, had been killed by a White police officer weeks earlier. 

The restaurant was set ablaze the night after Brooks' death, and protesters camped at the site for weeks afterward. Not far away, armed men had been occupying makeshift barricades, blocking roads and turning some drivers away. 

Police said the SUV Secoriea was riding in was attempting to turn around near one of the barricades when at least one person shot into the vehicle, hitting the girl. She died at Atlanta Medical Center shortly afterward.

The Atlanta Police Department said that they were made aware of the blocked roads before the shooting, but were not able to respond immediately due to a high volume of 911 calls at the time.

Prosecutors allege that it was Conley who fatally shot Secoriea, and they assert that both Conley and McKinney were associated with the Bloods criminal street gang. Both men had pleaded not guilty to the charges.

Last week, McKinney, who wasn't charged with murder, entered Alford pleas. The plea allows a person to maintain their innocence while acknowledging that it is in their best interest to plead guilty. 

Fulton County Superior Court Judge Rachelle Carnesale rejected McKinney's attorney's request for a five-year sentence, instead accepting prosecutors' recommendation of 40 years with 20 to serve in prison. She said he would have gotten a heftier sentence had he been the one who shot Secoriea.

Secoriea Turner's family sues city, sets up scholarship

Secoriea's parents filed a lawsuit in June 2021 against the city and officials. The lawsuit, which is still pending, accuses city leaders of showing negligence in failing to remove armed vigilantes who gathered at the site along with peaceful protesters, which created a dangerous situation that the family says led to Secoriea's death.

The girl's family has created a scholarship in her name in partnership with nonprofits The Black Women's Lab and The Black Man Lab. The first was given out to a Spelman College sophomore in 2024.