Man pleads guilty to murder for shooting girl caught in Minneapolis gunfire

A Minneapolis man on Monday pleaded guilty to second-degree murder in the May 2021 death of a 9-year-old girl who was shot while jumping on a trampoline.

Trinity Ottoson-Smith, 9, was at a friend's birthday party when prosecutors said Dpree Shareef Robinson fired a 9 mm handgun from the alley at three people on the back porch, hitting the girl. She later died.

Authorities said Robinson had previously threatened a resident of the home who was allegedly part of a rival gang. Prosecutors last year said search warrants on Robinson’s social media accounts showed that he described himself as an “active shooter” for a local street gang.

Robinson, 20, will receive a sentence of 37 1/2 years when he is sentenced March 21, Hennepin County Attorney Mary Moriarty said in a statement. Under Minnesota law, he’ll be eligible for supervised release after serving two-thirds, or 25 years, of the sentence in prison.

His guilty plea to second-degree intentional murder means he avoids trial on a premeditated murder count that carries a sentence of life without parole.

Trinity was the second child to die from a gunshot wound in the city in as many weeks that spring.

Six-year-old Aniya Allen had been riding in her mother’s car on May 17 when they were suddenly caught in an exchange of gunfire near 36th and Penn avenues North. She later died at a hospital.

Another child, Ladavionne Garrett Jr., was severely wounded after being shot in the head on April 30 as he was riding in a car with his parents. He was 10 years old at the time. He survived but was left with critical injuries.

Police have not made any arrests in either of those shootings.

• More than half of Minnesota county election offices have received bomb threats
• Minneapolis punk show mass shooting victims react as teen takes plea deal
• ‘It’s the best week’: After being wrongly incarcerated, a Minnesota man is now free
• Fireworks incident raises tensions in the Mankato Muslim community