An Allegheny County judge Tuesday sentenced 17-year-old Thomas McKissick to at least 20 years in prison on charges of homicide and attempted homicide that stemmed from two separate 2017 incidents in Duquesne, according to the District Attorney’s Office.
The first incident happened Oct. 10, 2017, when a 16-year-old boy met with McKissick at the Polish Hill Baseball Field, according to the criminal complaint. The victim intended to by marijuana from McKissick, then 16, but McKissick pulled a gun and shot the teen in the neck.
His friends drove him to UPMC McKeesport, and he survived his wounds, according to the complaint. He identified McKissick as the person who shot him.
A day later, 15-year-old Lezra Rice was shot and killed in Duquesne near a pathway known as Nickly Hollow, just north of Williams Street, according to the criminal complaint. A search of Rice’s cell phone showed he’d been communicating with McKissick just prior to the shooting.
From McKissick’s home, also in Duquesne, investigators collected a box of .45-caliber ammunition that matched the casings found at both the baseball field at the scene of Rice’s shooting, according to the complaint.
McKissick pleaded guilty in front of Judge Alex Bicket to third-degree murder and attempted homicide. In exchange for the plea, the District Attorney’s Office agreed to 20 to 40 years in prison.
