NEWTON COUNTY, Ga. — Two brothers were sentenced to prison after one tried to take the blame for firing shots at a woman back in 2019.
Jonathon and Jourdan Phillips were sentenced after a woman was beaten and shot at near Greenfield Way in Newton County.
Jonathon Phillips was sentenced to 25 years in prison while his brother, Jourdan, was sentenced to 10 years, according to a Facebook post from the Newton County District Attorney's Office.
The brothers were sentenced after a Newton County jury found the pair guilty of charges relating to the woman’s assault. Jonathon Phillips was found guilty of several charges including aggravated assault and discharging a firearm near a street.
Jonathon was believed to have hit the woman before dragging her to the ground, according to the post. Prosecutors also said that the woman managed to get away, but was shot at several times by Jonathan.
She was not shot, but her car and several homes were struck by bullets, according to the post. In an attempt to cover up his brother’s crime, Jourdan lied to investigators four months after the shooting.
Jourdan told police that he was the shooter - once in a sworn statement and again during an interview with investigators, according to prosecutors. Investigators determined Jonathan was the shooter and not Jourdan.
Jonathan’s brother, Jourdan, was found guilty of making false statements.
The brothers were sentenced following a pre-sentence investigation, according to the post. These types of investigations are done once a defendant has been convicted of a crime.
Pre-sentence investigations review the defendant's charges, which helps the judge to decide their sentencing.