A Charlotte man was sentenced to two consecutive life sentences without the possibility of parole after a jury convicted him in the October 2020 shooting deaths of a young couple, killed in their vehicle while their toddler son sat in the back seat. Xaveon Dunn was found guilty of two counts of first-degree murder and possession of a firearm by a convicted felon following a trial that began August 31, 2026, and concluded Tuesday.
According to the Mecklenburg County District Attorney's Office, Dunn was sentenced for his role in the murders of 26-year-old Dondrake Blackmoore and 27-year-old Jakailah Jackson. Superior Court Judge Donald R. Cureton Jr. handed down the consecutive life terms following the jury's verdict.
The shooting happened around 12:15 p.m. on October 19, 2020, on the 2100 block of Kilborne Drive in east Charlotte, according to WBTV. Blackmoore was pronounced dead at the scene, while Jackson was rushed to a hospital, where she later died. Prosecutors say Dunn was driving a blue SUV on Kilborne Drive and pulled out in front of Blackmoore's car, forcing Blackmoore to stop to avoid a collision. Dunn then allegedly held a gun out of his SUV window and fired eight shots into Blackmoore's vehicle, according to Queen City News. Six of those shots hit Blackmoore, while two struck Jackson, who was sitting in the passenger seat.
A Toddler in the Back Seat
Blackmoore and Jackson's young son was in the vehicle at the time of the shooting and was unharmed, per Queen City News, which reported the child was 3 years old. A separate account from People described the child as a 4-year-old boy who was likewise unharmed. Jackson managed to run into a nearby store after being shot before she was transported to the hospital, where she later died.
Investigators say Dunn illegally possessed a firearm before the shooting, having already been convicted of multiple felonies at the time. He was arrested at a home on Loretta Place, according to the outlet's reporting. Detectives collected clothing consistent with what Dunn was seen wearing in surveillance footage, along with live 9mm ammunition, as part of the evidence gathered in the case.
A Second Man's Separate Plea
Jamaal Porterfield, who allegedly helped Dunn after the murders, resolved his own case months earlier. In December 2024, Porterfield pleaded guilty to felony obstruction of justice as part of a plea deal that dismissed two counts of felony accessory after the fact, according to Queen City News.
Porterfield was sentenced to between six and 18 months in prison, but that sentence was suspended, meaning he won't serve it as long as he completes three years of probation, the outlet reported. His probation terms did include a seven-day prison stint, but that requirement was waived because he had already been credited for time spent in jail.
A Case Years in the Making
The prosecution of Dunn stretched nearly six years from the initial shooting to this week's sentencing, tracking a path from the 2020 killings and arrests to a jury trial and consecutive life terms in September 2026. The case's resolution echoes another high-profile double-murder prosecution: in South Carolina, disgraced attorney Alex Murdaugh was likewise sentenced to two consecutive life terms for the murders of his wife and son, as reported by WUNC.
The Mecklenburg County District Attorney's Office announced Dunn's sentencing in a statement, closing out a case that began with a chaotic scene on a residential Charlotte street and ended with a jury holding him accountable for the deaths of both Blackmoore and Jackson.
