Second gunman in 2022 mass shooting at Columbiana mall sentenced to 30 years in prison
A second man charged in the 2022 mass shooting at Columbiana Centre was sentenced to 30 years in prison Tuesday at the Lexington County Courthouse.
Amari Sincer-Jamal Smith, 24, pleaded guilty to nine counts of assault and battery of a high and aggravated nature and one count of attempted murder in connection with the mass shooting at the mall during Easter weekend in 2022, according to the 11th Circuit Solicitor’s Office.
Smith was one of three people arrested in the 2022 shooting at the mall off Harbison Boulevard, when crossfire from a gunfight left nine bystanders injured and spread panic throughout the crowded shopping center.
He is the second of the three to be sentenced for the shooting, following Jewayne Price, who, last month was sentenced to 35 years in prison after a jury trial. The remaining shooter, 22-year-old Marquise Robinson was convicted in November on assault and battery charges, but was acquitted of attempted murder, and is currently awaiting sentencing.
Multiple victims of the shooting, ranging in age from 16 to 73, testified of the affect Price’s actions had on their lives before Judge Walton McLeod handed down the sentence, the 11th Circuit Solicitor’s Office said in a news release.
Investigators said Price had a preexisting dispute with Robinson and Smith when the three crossed paths at the mall. Surveillance video shown at Price’s trial showed him pulling a 9mm firearm and firing at the other two men, who also produced guns from their waistbands and Smith fired at Price. At least 17 rounds of ammunition were recovered by investigators inside the mall.
While nine people required treatment for gunshot wounds and other injuries after the shootout, none of the three men charged in the shooting were injured.
Prior to imposing Smith’s sentence, McLeod said “the sentence reflects the necessary ‘consequences’ when multiple persons are injured by gunfire in a crowded public setting,” according to the news release.
“Once again, the Court addressed the violent nature of this mass shooting,” 11th Circuit Solicitor Rick Hubbard, who prosecuted the case alongside Deputy Solicitor Suzanne Mayes, said in a news release. “Many lives and families were permanently affected by this tragic event. We hope to reassure the public that acts of violence will not be tolerated in our community.”
This story was originally published March 11, 2025 at 5:59 PM.
