FAYETTE COUNTY, Ga. — A teenager who was found not guilty of murdering a 15-year-old girl says he now wants to help other young people avoid the type of trouble he found himself in.
Yeshua Mathis, 19, said he will now dedicate his life to telling kids about the dangers of guns and toxic friends.
“I never would have thought I’d be in jail. Facing a life sentence,” Mathis told Channel 2′s Tom Jones just days after a jury found him not guilty on murder charges in connection with the shooting death of 15-year-old Madison Gesswein inside her Peachtree City apartment last year.
He faced two counts of murder, aggravated assault and possession of a firearm during the commission of a felony.
Jones asked Mathis if he ever went inside the apartment that night.
“No. No sir,” Mathis told Jones.
Mathis said he actually tried to stop the gunman, Jacobean Brown, from pulling the trigger.
“Trying to calm the guy down and really just trying to be like it’s not worth it, please don’t do it,” he said.
Police arrested Mathis, Jacobean and Justus Smith and charged them with murder.
Mathis went to trial and took the stand.
He tearfully told the jury they went to the apartment to prank Madison by squirting her with soap and water.
He said he poured his heart out to the jury.
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“Just that I was innocent. I was a bystander. I tried to stop it. The guy looked at me and laughed in my face and called me stupid,” Mathias said.
He said he heard gunfire and ran. The jury found him not guilty on all charges.
His attorney says his testimony matched the evidence.
“No one could ever say he was lying. It was the truth. When you tell the truth that’s what comes out,” Clint Barbour said.
Mathis now plans on speaking to young people about avoiding toxic friends. “If you know one of your friends has a gun don’t be his friend,” he said.
He also apologizes to Madison’s family. He wants them to know he never wanted Madison’s life to end.
“I did all I could that night to try and prevent it,” Mathias said.
The Fayette District Attorney’s Office sent a statement to Jones, saying:
“Unfortunately, there are times when a jury considers evidence in a different way than we do. That is the very nature of the criminal justice system. In this case, the evidence of guilt was overwhelming, and it was our duty to present that evidence to a jury of the defendant’s peers. While we disagree with the verdict in this case, we respect the decision of the jury and we are grateful for the vital role that they play in our system of American jurisprudence. Our hearts continue to go out to Madison’s family, and we pray they find peace in the days ahead.”
A jury found Jacobean Brown guilty, and he was sentenced to life without parole.
Justus Smith is still awaiting trial.
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