Columbus man convicted of New Year’s Day murder in Springfield

The New Year began with multiple shootings in Springfield, including one taking the life of Darryl Stamper Jr., 41.

Eight months later, Lawaun Bass, 32, of Columbus, was convicted Wednesday after a three-day trial.

Bass was also convicted on the felonious assault of a woman who was also shot during the incident. He will be sentenced Aug. 18. Jurors convicted Bass of one count of murder, two counts of felonious assault, one count of improperly discharging a firearm at a habitation and one count of tampering with evidence.

Stamper was shot and killed at 118 S. Race St. in Springfield, and two other people were also shot on the same street the next morning.

Earlier in the night of the shooting, Bass’s sister was involved in a traffic accident that brought Bass to Springfield. He was upset with people who let his sister leave the party with her keys, which was his motive for the shooting, according to Clark County Prosecutor Dan Driscoll.

Along with Bass, 33, Nefertari A. Alexander, 32, of Columbus, was also arrested in January. Charges against Alexander, who had faced complicity to murder and other charges, were dismissed as she had no knowledge of what was happening prior to the shooting, said Driscoll.

Another shooting that happened Jan. 2 injured a teenager and a 75-year-old woman on the same block as the New Year’s Day shooting that killed Stamper.

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