Macon man convicted of killing his ex-girlfriend is sentenced to 20 years in prison

Corey Deshawn Jackson, 31, was sentenced Thursday to 20 years in prison after being convicted of killing his ex-girlfriend in 2022.

Jackson pleaded guilty Thursday to two charges: voluntary manslaughter and possession of a firearm by a convicted felon. He got a 30 year sentence but is set to serve the first 20 years of his sentence behind bars, and the following 10 years on probation.

Jackson shot and killed his ex-girlfriend, Gabriella Harris, just after midnight on May 21, 2022, at the Windy Hill Manor Apartments. Harris was the mother of Jackson’s child and they had been recently separated before she was killed.

Weeks prior to the shooting, Jackson reportedly sent multiple threatening messages to Harris, including a message that said: “if you ever try to leave, we gone be like those people on that movie.” Jackson manipulated visitation with their young child to maintain contact with Harris, which prosecutors said paired with his pattern of stalking behavior gradually culminated in the fatal shooting of Harris, according to a news release from the Macon Judicial Circuit District Attorney Anita Howard.

The case serves as an example of a “deadly escalation” of domestic violence that can occur when threatening behavior goes unchecked and “serves as a reminder that domestic violence is a community crisis,” Howard said.

This story was originally published June 27, 2025 at 3:15 PM.