The case against one of two men accused in a drive-by shooting that left a young Pontiac girl dead recently advanced to Oakland County Circuit Court for possible trial.
JaJuan McDonald, 19, is charged with 10 crimes including first-degree murder and assault with intent to murder in connection with the March 18, 2022 fatal shooting of Ariah Jackson, 7, outside her home in Pontiac. Ariah’s mother, Lashawn Jackson, was also hit by the gunfire and survived.
Judge Cynthia Walker of 50th District Court bound the case over to the higher court at the conclusion of a preliminary exam last week.
Just prior to the shooting, according to investigators, Lashawn Jackson returned home after picking up Ariah and three other children from a school bus stop. A car had followed them, and one person in the car opened fire on Jackson’s car while it was in the driveway. Ariah was shot in the head and pronounced dead at an area hospital. Her mother suffered a grazing wound to the head.
A second man, Justin Rouser, 21, is the accused shooter and faces the same 10 charges. His case was bound over to the higher court in February. A judge subsequently ordered a competency evaluation for Rouser; a review hearing on the results is scheduled for Aug. 20.
According to the Oakland County Sheriff’s Office, McDonald and Rouser are members of “4-Block,” described as a violent street gang. Investigators say they’ve found no evidence that McDonald or Rouser knew Ariah or her family.
In another case, McDonald recently pleaded no contest to charges of assault with intent to do great bodily harm less than murder and felony firearms for an October 2021 incident. In exchange for the plea, prosecutors dismissed a charge of assault with intent to murder. Sentencing is scheduled for Aug. 29.