Teen shooter gets 23-year prison sentence for daytime ‘chilling execution’ outside St. Paul tobacco shop

Davion Brown s murder by -year-old Knyaw Taw was a chilling execution in the middle of the day Assistant Ramsey County Attorney Nori Wieder revealed in court Friday Knyaw Taw of St Paul got off his bike and walked coolly calmly up to Brown and other men who were standing outside a tobacco store on St Paul s Greater East Side around p m Sept Wieder announced at the teen s sentencing Knyaw Taw pulled a mm Smith Wesson handgun from his waistband and repeatedly fired at Brown whose back was turned hitting the -year-old six times at close range A targeted attack Your Honor Wieder communicated Ramsey County District Judge Jacob Kraus It doesn t appear that Davion even knew he was there Knyaw Taw who turned in December was charged in juvenile court with second-degree murder three days after the killing He waived certification into adult court on March and pleaded guilty to the charge He faced between and years in prison under state sentencing guidelines Kraus gave him a -year prison term This incident is so sad Kraus declared before handing down the sentence A young man who I never got the pleasure to meet lost his life and a young man sitting in front of the court going to prison for decades no matter what number I choose the present day Court documents do not give a motive for the shooting and we never have been explained why Davion was killed that day and why he chose Davion as his victim Wieder described the court He left on his bike Officers sent to Maryland Tobacco at Maryland Ave detected Brown lying in the store with multiple gunshot wounds Medics started shipping to Regions Hospital but Brown of St Paul was pronounced dead in the ambulance Davion Brown Courtesy photo Officers reviewed area surveillance video which captured the shooting Knyaw Taw wearing a black face mask a maroon Nike T-shirt and blue jeans pulled up to the area on a bike He got off the bike and walked toward a red Ford Expedition SUV parked in the lot It appears as if the occupant s of the Ford Expedition and the suspect exchanged words the charges say Knyaw Taw went back to his bike walked up to Brown and two others in front of the store and shot Brown repeatedly He got back on his bike and left Officers canvassed the area and were notified by a resident that a male matching the suspect s description was walking south on Germain Street from Idaho Avenue East A Ramsey County sheriff s deputy saw Knyaw Taw walking south on Germain Street at Sherwood Avenue and he ran cutting across the front yard of a home in the block of Cottage Avenue East He appeared to be holding something in the waistband of his jeans Officers chased him into a backyard then lost sight of him He was seen in the backyard of a home in the block of Clear Avenue East and taken into custody A black face mask and handgun were exposed in the area In an interview with police Knyaw Taw gave false identification information Investigators used a database that searches for known fingerprints to identify him You took my baby Knyaw Taw of St Paul had been arrested several times in Ramsey County for nonviolent crimes and was sought on an current Ramsey County warrant at the time of shooting prosecutor Wieder noted Friday in court Knyaw Taw s attorney citizens defender Erik Sandvick announced trauma and addiction were everywhere in his life since he was born He was born in a refugee camp in Laos and came to the United States at age with his parents His parents separated after his dad was incarcerated and his mom moved to Georgia Sandvick commented adding he was left in the care of his paternal grandparents Related Articles Ramsey County to pay M to family of hemophiliac who died after arrest jail Noah Feldman Here is Harvard s best argument against funding cuts Farmington man repeatedly stabbed his wife amid cheating accusations charges say Fairview Strength Services sues UnitedHealth Group subsidiary Inver Grove Heights mom spared jail after -year-old son shot brother with her gun Knyaw Taw was basically living on the streets and using a wide variety of drugs in the year prior to the shooting Sandvick declared This isn t an excuse for what happened but it does give us particular context on what was going on When it came time to address the court Knyaw Taw gave a one sentence apology saying I m sorry for what I did Earlier Brown s mother Kilolo Claiborne notified the teen she does not forgive him You took my baby she stated You took a father You took a brother an uncle someone that was so precious to our family She called Knyaw Taw a young boy who didn t even know my child He wasn t out there bothering nobody He didn t bother you And you still took his life And for what