Ex-NFL Prospect on Trial for First-Degree Murder at Golden Nugget Casino

A former University of South Alabama wide receiver is on trial for the 2021 murder of a father of three at Golden Nugget casino in Mississippi.

Jereme Lamond Jones got into a fight with a well-known 41-year-old named Randy Johnson just outside the casino. He then chased him back inside before shooting the man with the entire clip in his gun in front of several casino-goers, per Harrison County prosecutors.

Jones has been charged with first-degree murder. He is currently on trial in Circuit Court in Biloxi, Mississippi.

Assistant District Attorney George Huffman and District Attorney Crosby Parker are leading the prosecution.

Golden Nugget footage from September 18, 2021, showed Jones executing the Gulfport man. In the video, Johnson can be seen running through the casino and floor before tripping and landing on the ground, which allowed Jones to catch up to him.

Jones, upon reaching the man, shot him several times. Even as the man put his hands up to beg for mercy, Jones continued to shoot until he emptied the clip in his weapon.

“This defendant... chased Randy Johnson… and shot him 10 times in the middle of the casino floor,” Huffman said in court this week. “He shot him in the back. He shot him in the face. He shot him in the torso, and as Randy laid on the ground, with his arms up, the defendant shot him in the arms and in the hands.”

Johnson was at the casino with a friend, Tamara Willis. The two were sitting on a couch in a lounge for more than an hour when Jones and his cousin arrived at the same lounge. Security cameras showed that Jones circled the casino floor several times before he returned to the lounge and, after glancing at Johnson and Willis several times, approached them.

Willis testified that Jones told her he didn’t have a problem with her but asked if her friend (Johnson) “wanted to take it outside.” Shortly after, footage showed the pair leaving the lounge and heading into the parking garage, where a fight ensued.

Johnson attacked Jones first with two punches, which prompted him to respond.

Johnson grappled with Jones and took him to the ground, at which time Jones’ gun and holster fell from his waistband. Johnson, upon noticing the firearm, exited the fight, ran back inside, and alerted Willis to what he had seen.

Johnson then continued to run through people and tables inside the casino until he fell and was fatally shot. Jones, even after the man had stopped moving, proceeded to stomp on the deceased’s face.

Prosecutors played video of the incident for the court to see. They also claimed that Jones’ actions were premeditated and in line with first-degree murder, while Jones said they were not.

Several eyewitnesses were present for the shooting. None of them were injured.

Jones was once a local star on the field. He scored 12 touchdowns in his collegiate career and was eligible for the NFL Draft in 2015.

He had worked as a coach at McGill-Toolen Catholic High School and owned a company that helped train wide receivers. He had also previously spoken on the dangers of gun violence after a 2019 shooting occurred at Sage Park, where he often trained.

“It's always going to be a scary moment when there is a shooting or you hear gunshots, but I feel like that's something that doesn't happen over here often,” Jones said.