HOUSTON — A 26-year-old Houston man was sentenced to nearly six decades in prison for beating a stranger to death in a north Houston parking lot. The attack happened after a minor fender-bender in 2020.
"This was a senseless and unreasonable reaction to a petty dispute," Harris County District Attorney Kim Ogg said. "The victim’s family lost a devoted father and beloved son and although we were able to get justice, the family will never see their loved one again."
Treyivion Shaquille Ross was convicted of murder and sentenced to 58 years in prison for killing 56-year-old David Ray Young at a gas station on FM 1960 near the North Freeway.
Ross was driving a recently purchased car when he pulled out of the gas station parking lot and collided with the car that Young was driving.
Surveillance video showed that when the two men got out to exchange information, Ross knocked out Young by punching him in the face. When he fell to the ground, Ross continued to punch, kick and stomp Young.
Young ended up paralyzed from the neck down. He spent the next two years of his life in a wheelchair as a quadriplegic. His mother was his caregiver until he died from complications of his injuries on Nov. 28, 2022.
"For two years, David Young’s elderly mother fed him, bathed him, cleaned his medical tubes and was with him every step of the way," Assistant District Attorney Maroun Koutani said. "No mother should have to bury their son."
Prosecutors said that what made the case even more shocking was the fact that the men were strangers.
"This defendant’s short temper and history of assaulting others made him a danger to our community," Koutani said. "It’s clear that his weapon of choice is his hands, and we believe the jury did the right thing by handing down an appropriate sentence and ensuring the safety of our community."
Ross has to serve at least half of his sentence before he's eligible for parole.