Javaris Crittenton Likely Headed For Early Release, Victim's Mother Says 'It's Not Fair'

Former NBA player Javaris Crittenton has left prison, but the mother of the woman he was accused of killing is not happy about it.

22-year-old Jullian Jones was shot and at a party in 2011 after putting her kids to bed. Crittenton — a Georgia Tech standout who went on to play for the Lakers, Grizzlies, and Wizards — and his cousin, Douglas Gamble, were charged with her murder and a slew of additional charges. However, Crittenton agreed to a plea deal and was sentenced to 23 years behind bars.

He got another break when former District Attorney Paul Howard — the uncle of NBA star and Crittenton's former high school teammate, Dwight Howard — cut Crittenton another deal. It was one for a reduced 10-year sentence if he could teach others not to make the mistakes he did.

Thanks to this deal, Crittenton left prison last week having served a total of 10 years. Some of that was served before he cut his deal.

He will still be on probation for the next 30 years, have to serve 7,200 hours of community service over the next 10 years and wear a monitoring system for the next five.

Former NBA Player Javaris Crittenton during a court appearance in 2011. (Photo by Al Seib-Pool/Getty Images)

Jones' Family, Others Disagreed With Crittenton's Deal

Still, that wasn't enough to put Jones' family at ease.

"That wasn’t fair for the family not to know what (DA) Paul Howard was doing,” Woods' mother June told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. “I would’ve spoken up then. It’s not fair to us. It’s not fair to her children what he did.”

Others have questioned the deal Howard cut with Crittenton, including ex-Gwinett County District Attorney Danny Porter.

“There’s no question that there was favoritism,” Porter — who was not involved in the case — told the Atlanta Journal-Constitution. “There’s no question he got preferential treatment. This is not a typical plea deal.”

The current Fulton County District Attorney, Fani Willis, didn't agree with the deal either. She attempted to block Crittenton's release, however, the judge ruled that the original deal still stood.

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