Convicted Club Shooter Sentenced to 32 Years in Prison

NASSAU, BAHAMAS – A man convicted in a nightclub shooting was on Thursday sentenced to 32 years in prison.

Thirty-year-old Vernal Johnson was convicted of the February 9, 2018 murder of Rico Taylor last August.

Prosecutors said a fight broke out between the men after they bumped into each other while at the El Rancho Bar on Hutchinson Street.

Johnson pumped four bullets into Taylor during the fight that was caught on the bar’s surveillance cameras.

At trial, Johnson said that he wrested the gun away from Taylor and shot him in self-defense. However, this version of events was not captured on the security footage.

The defense said that Taylor, who was on bail for murder when he was killed, was a terror on the streets.

Conversely, Johnson, who worked as an engineering supervisor, was a productive member of society.