PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — A man accused of shooting and killing a teenager getting off a SEPTA bus two years ago has pleaded guilty to third-degree murder in a plea deal with prosecutors.
Robert Ross Jamieson will spend the next 24 to 50 years in prison, as part of a negotiated plea deal in the shooting death of Ceani Smalls, who was 16.
Jamieson, 43, was originally charged with murder and three counts of attempted murder, after firing 14 rounds at North 22nd Street and West Sedgley Avenue in Strawberry Mansion two days after Thanksgiving 2019.
Prosecutors say Jamison was high on PCP when he started firing his gun, allegedly agitated after being taunted by two young boys.
At the same time, they say, Smalls was getting off the bus after shopping at the mall, a reward from her parents, for her good report card.
People were running and ducking for cover. Smalls, who was wearing headphones and may not have heard the shots, was fatally struck.
Smalls, who attended Mathematics, Civics and Sciences Charter School, was described as a bubbly, bright straight-A student who wanted to be a dentist when she grew up.
Jamieson, who has a prior drug conviction, confessed to the killing and apologized to the girl's family in court.
