Shooter convicted in drive-by that wounded 5-year-old Minneapolis girl

A Minneapolis man was convicted in an August drive-by shooting that wounded a 5-year-old girl in the foot while she was sleeping.

Marquell Johnson, 27, was convicted of three counts: dangerous weapon — drive-by shooting, ineligible possession of a firearm, and second-degree assault.

Hennepin County District Judge Kerry Meyer heard testimony last month in a bench trial without a jury, and issued her decision Monday.

"This is a very good outcome on a difficult case," Hennepin County Attorney Mike Freeman said in a news release. "We are pleased that justice was done for that little girl."

The girl was injured Aug. 12 when Johnson fired seven shots into a Minneapolis duplex in the 2100 block of N. 4th Street. A bullet passed through her right foot and fractured several bones.

Another bullet traveled inches within a pillow and bed where a woman was sleeping in the upstairs unit.

According to the county attorney's office: The girl's mother, who lived in the lower unit, was leaving for work when she saw a car approaching driven by someone she knew to visit her upstairs neighbors.

The shooter exited the car, walked 10 feet and fired several shots into the building before fleeing, the county attorney's office said.

The girl's mother later identified Johnson to police as the car's driver.

One of the upstairs neighbors spoke to police the day of the shooting and "left them with the impression" Johnson had asked for his help to retaliate against some men who had "beaten" him, but the neighbor declined, Meyer wrote in her decision.

Johnson did not testify at trial. His videotaped interview with police was played in court.

He denied involvement in the crime, but provided an inconsistent timeline and alibi, Meyer wrote.