Chattanooga man sentenced in car-chase shooting
CHATTANOOGA – A Chattanooga man whose alleged victim never showed up to his attempted murder trial was sentenced to nine years in prison this week.
Osei Sorrell, 33, received nine years Monday on his attempted second-degree murder charge for shooting a man in the head from behind the wheel of his SUV during a car chase in September 2015. That man, Kadarius Johnson, survived the shooting but ignored a subpoena to testify in August, prompting prosecutors to issue a warrant for his arrest.
Sorrell was found guilty of attempted second-degree murder, aggravated assault and reckless endangerment. And prosecutors ultimately dropped the warrant for Johnson’s arrest. Sorrell faced eight to 12 years for the attempted murder charge and has already served about two years in custody. Since he’ll be eligible for parole after serving 30 percent of his sentence, he could be released in six months, according to defense attorney Joshua Weiss.
Sorrell has no prior convictions in Hamilton County Criminal Court.