A Lancaster teenager who asked a boy whether he wanted to die moments before shooting him in the face has been sentenced to nine and a half to 20 years in state prison. Jay-Quan Edward Williams, 17, of the 300 block of East Liberty Street, was 16 at the time of the October 8, 2025 shooting near Culliton Park, which left the victim with a shattered jaw and in need of surgery.
According to DailyVoice.com, Williams pleaded guilty on September 24, 2025 to attempted criminal homicide, two counts of aggravated assault, recklessly endangering another person, possession of a firearm by a minor, firearms not to be carried without a license, and persons not to possess a firearm. Lancaster County Judge Thomas Sponaugle handed down the sentence, calling the case profoundly sad and telling Williams he had thrown his life away in two seconds, per the same outlet. Williams declined to address the court before sentencing, while his attorney said the shooting had irrevocably changed two young men's lives for the worse and that the victim's survival was fortunate.
A Confrontation Near a Freshly Upgraded Park
The shooting unfolded around 3 p.m. on October 8, 2025, when Williams encountered a group of children, including the victim, near Culliton Park in the 200 block of West Strawberry Street. Prosecutors say Williams asked the boy whether he wanted to die before drawing a gun concealed in his waistband and firing a single shot that struck the victim in the face, mutilating his jaw, according to the report. Williams fled the scene and was arrested two days later, on October 10.
Police investigators later found pieces of the victim's teeth at the crime scene near West Strawberry and South Arch streets, and surveillance video showed Williams escalating the confrontation by showing something on his cell phone before drawing his handgun, FOX43 reported. Culliton Park, located at 260 W. Strawberry Street in Lancaster's Cabbage Hill neighborhood, is a heavily used municipal park that recently underwent green infrastructure and playground upgrades led by the city, according to city records cited by Trulia, and serves residential blocks in southwest Lancaster City.
A Second Teen Charged as Co-Conspirator
Charging documents and video surveillance showed Williams initially spotted the victim while riding an e-bike, then picked up 18-year-old Keyshawn Williams at a West King Street McDonald's before the pair returned to Culliton Park and switched drivers to follow the group, FOX43 reported in December. Police reconstructed the sequence using municipal and private surveillance footage. Keyshawn Williams was arrested on April 16, 2026, following a traffic stop, and was charged with attempted homicide, aggravated assault, and conspiracy, FOX43 reported.
Keyshawn Williams was held in Lancaster County Prison on $250,000 bail and waived his preliminary hearing on April 27, 2026, sending his case to Lancaster County court on two counts of aggravated assault and reckless endangerment conspiracy, according to the Lancaster County District Attorney's Office.
Father Arrested Over Threats to Victim's Family
The fallout from the shooting extended beyond the two teens. Calvin Williams, the 39-year-old father of Jay-Quan Williams, was arrested in November 2025 for making terroristic threats after allegedly sending messages threatening to kill members of the victim's family and his ex-wife's family, FOX43 reported. The arrest came roughly one month after Jay-Quan Williams was taken into custody.
Before his guilty plea, Jay-Quan Williams waived his preliminary hearing on November 6, 2025, before Judge Adam Witkonis and was held at the Lancaster County Youth Intervention Center in lieu of $250,000 bail, per the Lancaster County District Attorney's Office. The case then proceeded directly to the Lancaster County Court of Common Pleas.
Why a 16-Year-Old Faced Adult Charges
Under Pennsylvania's Juvenile Act, 42 Pa.C.S. § 6355, juveniles aged 15 or older who commit violent offenses like attempted homicide using a deadly weapon are automatically excluded from juvenile court and charged directly as adults, according to the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania's juvenile delinquency benchbook. Defendants may petition for decertification to request a transfer back to juvenile court. Separately, under 18 Pa.C.S. § 6110.1, minors under 18 are prohibited from possessing handguns, and individuals under 21 are ineligible for a Pennsylvania license to carry concealed firearms, which formed the legal basis for the firearms charges Williams faced, per the District Attorney's Office.
Assistant District Attorney Andrew Harbaugh prosecuted the case on behalf of Lancaster County District Attorney Heather Adams, who announced the final sentence following the September 24 guilty plea, FOX43 reported. Williams was also ordered to pay more than $13,000 in restitution for the victim's medical expenses. Lancaster City Bureau of Police Officer Brandon McCormick filed the original charges.
