Man Pleads Guilty In Accidental Shooting Death of Friend

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A Bartow County resident has entered a guilty plea in connection to the 2014 accidental shooting death of a friend.

Jesse Daniel Johnson on Tuesday, Oct. 20 pleaded guilty to one count each of involuntary manslaughter and reckless conduct, Bartow County Superior Court records show.

He was sentenced under the state’s First Offender Act to 10 years, 12 months of which he will serve incarcerated and the rest on probation.

Johnson will have to abide by certain special conditions of probation, which include paying $1,197.59 in restitution to the family of victim Keypher Logan Kelly’s family and not possessing any firearms.

According to the Bartow County Sheriff’s Office, Kelly, Johnson and three other residents were at a home on Wetlands Road in White cleaning several pistols.

Johnson was in the process of putting his pistol back together when he inserted the loaded magazine into the gun, said Sgt. Jonathan Rogers.

Rogers said Johnson fired the gun after reassembly, and Kelly was hit in the upper chest or neck area. After interviews, Johnson was initially charged with reckless conduct. The involuntary manslaughter charge was added on after Kelly passed away.

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