A Houston man's botched attempt for revenge has led to a 27-year sentence for the wrongful murder of an innocent man in Arlington, Texas. Kendell Jerrell Morris, aged 26, was handed down the sentence on Wednesday after being found guilty of murdering 24-year-old Robert Cooley III, according to Fort Worth Star-Telegram.
The tragic case, which unfolded back in May 2020, began when Morris drove from Houston to Arlington with one goal: to target the new boyfriend of his child's mother. Due to a fatal misidentification, Morris shot Cooley, mistaking him for his intended victim. Cooley who was simply a Black man with dreadlocks, matching the vague description Morris had been given, was killed in the parking lot of an apartment complex.
Evidence presented in the case included video surveillance from the night before the shooting, showing Morris purchasing .223 magazines at a store. The narrative pieced together by the Arlington Police, illustrated a calculated trip made by Morris and a friend, fueled by adversarial phone conversations with the real target. Morris’s arrest affidavit also stated that Morris had never met the Arlington man he was looking for, as detailed by the Irving Weekly.
Cooley's life and ambitions were brought to light in an obituary remembered by his family, they said he was "an exceptional athlete" who had a passion for music and the arts. “Robert also loved performing," his family wrote. “He had a dream of becoming big in the music industry. He also had a gift for cooking which he learned from his loving mother, and was a talented virtual arts artist.” The culprit was caught by a Texas Department of Public Safety trooper near Houston. Furthermore, an AR-15 rifle was found in Morris's vehicle, linking him to the crime, per the Fort Worth Star-Telegram.
On the day of the shooting, witnesses reported seeing Morris's white 2008 Nissan Altima at the scene. Immediately following the gunshots that took Cooley's life, the vehicle fled. A murder charge against the friend who accompanied Morris was dismissed at the discretion of prosecutors. The Tarrant County District Attorney's Office recognized the Arlington Police Department's commitment to the case, thanking them for their work and dedication to community safety in a message shared on social media.
