May 05--Prosecutors have upgraded charges to murder for a man currently serving a 21-year prison sentence for attempted murder after one of the victims died, 15 years after being shot.
First-degree murder charges were filed against Robert Lipsey, 33, after Anton Johnson, 36, died in July from a shooting that occurred on the 300 block of North Lorel Avenue on April 13, 2000, according to prosecutors.
Johnson was paralyzed from the waist down after being shot in the back and head, prosecutors said at Lipsey's court hearing on Thursday. Another victim was shot in the stomach.
Lipsey was found guilty of two counts of attempted first degree murder on Dec. 2, 2002 and was sentenced to 21 years in prison, according to prosecutors.
After Johnson died, the medical examiner's office determined he died from "remote complications of multiple gunshot wounds," meaning wounds suffered a long time before his death.
The autopsy found that a blood clot had traveled to his lung, causing him to suffocate, according to prosecutors.
