2 men sentenced to life in prison for murder of 18-year-old in Macon

Two men who were found guilty of murdering an 18-year-old in north Macon were sentenced to life in prison this week with the possibility of parole.

The men — Jaylen Smith and Jordan Mullis — were found guilty on Aug. 16 of felony murder in the November 2021 shooting death of Montaveous Raines Jr., according to a release sent out by the Macon Judicial Circuit District Attorney’s Office ahead of a Friday news conference to discuss the convictions.

The fatal shooting happened in the 700 block of Greentree Parkway in the Lake Wildwood subdivision. Smith and Mullis were charged with one count of malice murder and one count of felony murder.

Speaking at a press conference before Mullis and Smith’s sentences were announced, District Attorney for the Macon Judicial Circuit Anita R. Howard pointed to the murder as an instance of gun violence being rectified by residents cooperating with law enforcement. She called on community members to report crimes they witness.

“While we’ve secured justice … our work isn’t finished,” Howard said. “We cannot stop gun violence without the community’s active participation.”

Mullis and Smith’s attorneys argued prior to their conviction that the two men shot in self defense after Raines allegedly ran up to a car they were sitting in, wearing all black and brandishing a gun, according to court testimony.

Evidence at the scene showed the only shell casings recovered came from Smith’s gun, which he admitted to hiding after the shooting, according to the District Attorney’s office.

The suspects had been set to stand trial twice before, with Bibb County Judge Jeffrey Monroe having dismissed the case in the prior two trials.

The first time, lost evidence and a lack of the grand jurors needed to indict Mullis and Smith pushed Monroe to dismiss the case in October 2024. Then, in April, a prosecution witness made a statement Monroe ruled “impermissible,” leading to a mistrial.