Three men have been sentenced to lengthy prison terms for their roles in the 2023 shooting death of Michael Cooper in Warner Robins, according to Houston County District Attorney Eric Edwards.
Shadarrius Dyone Hogan, 24, received a 30-year prison sentence after pleading guilty to voluntary manslaughter and possessing a firearm by a first offender probationer. The charges stem from an incident on January 16, 2023, when Hogan, along with Vincent Maurice Winston, 22, and Chancellor Stephen Williams, 23, pursued and shot Cooper multiple times.
Winston and Williams pleaded guilty to voluntary manslaughter and possessing a firearm during the commission of a felony. Both were sentenced to 25 years in prison. Their sentences are “conditioned upon their truthful testimony if called as witnesses in the trial of Hogan,” Edwards said.
Hogan’s trial had been scheduled for later this month but he confessed on Thursday.
According to Edwards, video footage showed that Cooper confronted Hogan at gas pumps outside a convenience store at 544 N. Davis Drive. The argument escalated, with Cooper holding a handgun by his side. Afterward, Hogan left the scene to pick up Winston and Williams. The three then drove around looking for Cooper while armed with at least two handguns.
They found Cooper on Ignico Drive and began chasing him. Williams and Winston fired multiple shots at Cooper’s car. Cooper was hit at least four times; one bullet penetrated his lung and heart and proved fatal.
Cooper tried to drive himself to the hospital but crashed into a utility pole near another convenience store at 699 N. Davis Drive. His handgun was recovered from his vehicle; investigators determined he did not fire it during the chase.
“This was a senseless act of violence that played out on our city streets in view of the community and cost Michael Cooper his life. After an argument, these defendants armed themselves, hunted him down, and opened fire in traffic—endangering not only their intended target but everyone on the roadway that afternoon,” Edwards said. “Houston County will not tolerate reckless gun violence.”
