Marquise Trevone Hammonds-Ford was in a Minneapolis courtroom Wednesday to be sentenced for illegal gun possession.

But first, Assistant Hennepin County Attorney Joshua Larson repeated the original allegations that led to the day’s hearing: that he started a shootout in a crowded parking lot behind the former Whiskey Junction bar that resulted in the death of Joseph Johns, a 40-year-old Eagan and Eden Prairie firefighter who was caught in the crossfire.

Marquise Trevone Hammonds-Ford (Courtesy of the Hennepin County Sheriff’s Office)

Hammonds-Ford, 29, of Monticello, had been charged with aiding and abetting first-degree riot resulting in death, but pleaded guilty to the lesser gun possession charge last week after reaching an agreement with the prosecution. He was sentenced Wednesday to 6½ years in prison according to the terms of that agreement.

“Everyone here knows that what the defendant did on May 5, 2024, which is returning him to prison again, was more than this,” Larson said. “His crime was not the mere operation of a firearm.”

Hammonds-Ford pulled out a 10mm handgun modified into an automatic weapon, waved it around and taunted another group of gun-toting men on the other side of the street, where people had gathered to celebrate the anniversary of the founding of a motorcycle club, Larson said.

Larson was interrupted by Laura Johnson, Hammonds-Ford’s public defender, who objected to his line of argument, saying it was beyond the factual basis of the gun charge he pleaded guilty to in court. She was overruled by Judge Hilary Lindell Caligiuri.

Larson went on to say that Hammonds-Ford then yelled an expletive to the group across the street and fired his gun in the air and “over the heads of his adversaries and over the heads of other innocent people in that parking lot, heard vividly by those present and heard and captured on surveillance video.”

Hammonds-Ford’s gunfire resulted in return fire, leading to return fire from his group, Larson said. “Seven guns were fired out there in a matter of seconds,” he said. “At least 63 gunshots — 16 from the defendant’s gun, 47 from the other six guns — and someone was bound to get hurt.”

When the shooting stopped, Hammonds-Ford and others sped off in a truck and dropped off his associate, Dallas Antonio Villarreal-Griffin, at Hennepin County Medical Center. He had taken a bullet to the leg.

Johns was shot once by a bullet fired from a 9mm handgun, hitting him in the chest. He was pronounced dead at HCMC at 1:10 a.m., less than an hour later after the shootout.

Joseph Johns (Courtesy of the Eden Prairie Fire Department)

“Naturally and predictably, Mr. Johns died from the gunfire,” Larson said. “Unquestionably not by a shot directly fired by (Hammonds-Ford), but by the gunfire which resulted from his reckless instigation and escalation of this pointless, thoughtless and reckless shootout.”

One witness told police that Johns was directing traffic when the gunfight erupted.

“I also will add that Mr. Johns had many loved ones at that event when he died, including friends and associates of the law-abiding side of the motorcycle club world, some of whom surely witnessed the shootout,” Larson said.

Johns had been a full-time firefighter with Eagan since 2020. He was also a duty call firefighter part-time in Eden Prairie, where he lived, since 2015.

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Police say Hammonds-Ford is a member of the “Young N’ Thuggin” street gang of north Minneapolis. At the time of the shooting, he was on supervised probation on an illegal gun-possession conviction out of Hennepin County in 2019, court records show. In that case, he served a mandatory five-year prison sentence before being put on probation in February.

Hammonds-Ford started getting caught with guns in 2011, as a teen. He was adjudicated delinquent — the juvenile version of being found guilty — for illegal gun possession at least three times, Larson said.

In 2016, Hammonds-Ford pointed a gun at a woman at a gas station in Brooklyn Park and threatened to kill her, resulting in a 2017 conviction for terroristic threats.

‘Lack of investigation’

Johnson, the public defender, told the court that Larson “seems to be forgetting” that Hammonds-Ford did not plead guilty to starting a riot or to Johns’ killing.

Johnson said she has concerns with “the lack of investigation in this case.” Police had “clear and concise video, yet only arrested Mr. Hammonds-Ford and (Villarreal-Griffin),” she said. “They did not find the person who fired the 9mm shot that killed Mr. Johns. They did not continue to look for that person.”

Eight days after Hammonds-Ford’s complaint was filed, the Hennepin County Attorney’s Office also charged Villarreal-Griffin with aiding and abetting first-degree riot resulting in death. The 27-year-old from Columbia Heights has pleaded not guilty to the charge and his case is scheduled to go before a jury next month.

Johnson said Hammonds-Ford “serves as a scapegoat for this tragic incident” and asked the judge to sentence him per his Oct. 1 plea agreement.

The sentence is an upward departure from state sentencing guidelines due to the fact that his conduct was more serious than a typical case, according to the attorney’s office.

Larson said Johns’ family was made aware of the sentence and they understand his role in the events that night. “They know that the defendant cannot be held responsible by the criminal justice system in the same way that we prosecute those who commit intentional murders,” he said. “They understand the charges, and they approve of this sentence.”

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Although Johns’ family chose to not provide input in court on Wednesday, Larson said, “I want to make it clear that their loss and their solemn grace in the face of this absurd, unexpected and deeply sad death are not forgotten.”

The case of John’s death does not need to end with Hammonds-Ford’s sentencing, Larson said.

“There were scores of witnesses who were present that night who could step up, come forward and tell police more about what happened, because it’s the right thing to do,” he said. “To those who love Mr. Jones, I would only say there is no reason why we cannot get closer to a full truth.”