Man who tried to kill same person twice found guilty of attempted murder

GENEVA, NY — A jury convicted a Geneva man of several serious felony charges, including that he twice threatened to kill another Geneva resident last year, according to the Ontario County District Attorney’s Office.

Jerry L. Lovett Jr., 33, of Geneva was convicted Thursday of first-degree attempted murder, a class A felony; second-degree conspiracy, a class B violent felony; second-degree attempted murder, a class B violent felony; first-degree criminal use of a firearm, a class B felony; first-degree assault, a class B violent felony; and two counts of second-degree criminal possession of a weapon, a Class C violent felony, after a nine-day trial before Ontario County Court Judge Brian Dennis, according to the District Attorney’s Office.

Prosecutors said Lovett shot and attempted to kill a Geneva resident in January 2023 and then hired what he thought was a hitman to kill the person again that spring.

The conviction came a week after three people were charged in an alleged murder-for-hire plot in a separate case. Dennis, as well as an assistant district attorney, were threatened, investigators said.

The Geneva Police Department, Ontario County Sheriff’s Office, New York State Police and an undercover agent from the Bureau of Alcohol Tobacco and Firearms were involved in the investigation, according to Assistant District Attorney Peter Van Dellon, who prosecuted the case along with ADA Heather Hines.

“There is absolutely no doubt that Ontario County and the surrounding counties are safer as a result of Jerry Lovett Jr.’s conviction,” Van Dellon said in a prepared statement.

Lovett, who is facing 75 years to life in prison for these convictions, is scheduled to be sentenced on Aug. 13. The maximum sentence is 75 years to life.

This article originally appeared on MPNnow: Jerry Lovett convicted of attempted murder in Geneva NY