On January 28, 2021, Kenneth Jerai Easley (Age 32 of Corona) was sentenced to 40 years-to-life for the October 12, 2019, killing of Ayo Hullett in San Bernardino. Mr. Easley had been convicted in court on December 7, 2020, by a jury of his peers.
On October 12, 2019, at 3:38 a.m., police officers from the San Bernardino Police Department were dispatched to an address on Rainbow Lane in San Bernardino. Ayo Hullett was lying in a pool of blood on the sidewalk. A neighbor was performing CPR on him, and family members were screaming and crying.
Ayo lived at the location with his children and girlfriend Eliesha. They invited some of Ayo’s family and a friend over for a barbecue that evening. During the barbecue, Eliesha had been drinking and using drugs.
Ayo and the friend went to a liquor store. Upon returning, Eliesha confronted Ayo, accusing him of having an affair with the friend. Eliesha called her brother, Kenneth Jerai Easley, who arrived at the barbecue with two of his cousins.
For some unknown reason, Eilesha became involved in a physical fight with one of the cousins inside the residence, which moved into the street. Another fight erupted in the street between the cousin and the friend who had gone to the store with Ayo. At this point, Ayo and his mother, aunt, and children entered a vehicle to leave the barbecue.
Eliesha grabbed Ayo by his dreads and started pulling them off his head. Ayo’s sister intervened, but Eliesha began physically fighting her on the sidewalk. Ayo tried to break them up, but Eliesha was much bigger than him and started hitting him.
Ayo tried to pull Eliesha from her waist off his sister. Mr. Easley approached Ayo from behind and said, “Don’t be putting hands on my sister.” A gunshot was fired. Ayo’s mom and aunt said they saw and heard this happen. Later, they denied it and said they were told by other witnesses what had happened.
A KEY WITNESS
A neighbor who had performed CPR on Ayo on the night of the shooting testified in court and identified Mr. Easley as the person who shot Ayo. The neighbor explained how he had spoken to Mr. Easley on various occasions before the night of the shooting.
The neighbor said he heard Mr. Easley say, “Don’t be putting hands on my sister.” He saw Mr. Easley point something at the back of Ayo’s head and then heard a shot. The neighbor yelled from across the street through his window at Mr. Easley, “What you do?” The neighbor ran across the street, and Mr. Easley pointed an object at him as he walked backwards towards the alley with two other males.
“Every murder has two victims. The victim that died and the family left behind. We can’t bring Ayo back, but we did make sure to hold his killer accountable for shooting him. Ayo’s death will always leave a hole in the heart of his family. We can only hope they feel justice in the courtroom was done today. “
– Denise Yoakum
Deputy District Attorney
TESTIMONY OF THE PATHOLOGIST
The pathologist testified Ayo had been shot once in the nose. All the witnesses thought Ayo was shot in the back of the head. Mr. Easley’s defense counsel posed the theory that Mr. Easley was not the shooter, but one of the cousins was the actual shooter. This theory was disproven, as it was established the cousin was standing about 15 feet away from Ayo during the fight.
The pathologist testified the shooter was ½ to 2 feet away from Ayo. A fired cartridge casing was found near the right side of Ayo. One of the detectives on the case, Detective Flowers, has extensive experience with firearms from his Navy and SWAT officer experience. He testified the location of the fired cartridge casing placed Mr. Easley exactly where witnesses saw him. As for explaining how Ayo was shot in the nose and not in the back of the head, Detective Flowers described with all of the fighting; no one was in a fixed position. The victim most likely turned his head to look at what he was feeling at the back of his head after hearing Mr. Eealey’s statement about not touching his sister. When this happened, the shot was fired.
PROVING MR. EASLEY HAD LIED
When Mr. Easley was arrested, he told the detectives he had not been to Rainbow Lane in over a year and had not shot anyone.
Mr. Easley had two cell phones in his possession when he was arrested, but neither had been in use during the murder. A search warrant revealed Mr. Easley had a third cell phone, and records show it was near the crime scene immediately before and after the shooting. In addition to this information, they found this cell phone was used to call Mr. Easley’s girlfriend minutes after the shooting.
CONVICTED BY A JURY
On December 7, 2020, Mr. Easley was found guilty of second-degree murder and the jury found true the allegation the defendant used a firearm causing great bodily injury, which is considered a sentencing enhancement.
Justice has been served for Ayo and his family, thanks to a team effort between the district attorney’s office and the San Bernardino Police Department.
NEWS MEDIA COVERAGE
San Bernardino Sun – 27-year-old San Bernardino man fatally shot on sidewalk near family’s home
CASE INFORMATION
DA Case Number: 2019-00-0058451
Court Case Number: FSB190003902
View Superior Court Case Information
View Charging Document
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Mike Bires
Mike Bires is the public affairs officer for the San Bernardino County District Attorney’s Office. Responsible for the website, social media, and other digital platforms, Mr. Bires ensures the transparent message of the office is delivered to the members of the community with the highest standards of professionalism and ethics.