Trial in Kason Guyton case facing another delay
BAKERSFIELD, Calif. (KGET) — It appears as if the trial of two men accused of killing 5-year-old Kason Guyton won’t begin as scheduled this month.
The attorney representing Jeremy King, who, along with Jonathan Knight, is charged with murder in Kason’s death, told a Superior Court judge on Thursday he’s currently involved in what’s expected to be a six-week trial in Los Angeles.
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The attorney will give an update to Judge Eric Bradshaw on May 13 — the date trial had been scheduled to begin — and a new trial date will be set.
On Feb. 23, 2017, Kason and his brother were in a car driven by their mother’s boyfriend as they headed home from Maya Cinemas. A dark sedan followed.
As the car the boys were in turned west onto California Avenue from S Street, a passenger in the sedan leaned out the front window and opened fire, police said. The boyfriend, Dayvon Vercher, a member of the East Side Crips gang, is believed to have been the intended target, police said.
The shooting prompted a massive law enforcement investigation culminating in the arrests of 49 West Side Crips gang members or associates on charges unrelated to the shooting.
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Knight was among those arrested in the sweep.
A grand jury later indicted him and King — captured in October 2019 — on charges of first-degree murder, attempted murder, gang participation and other offenses.
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