Desmond Harris Sentenced to 50 Years in Shooting
April 26, 2024

ST. LOUIS, MO (April 26 , 2024) — Desmond Harris, 23, was sentenced by Judge Michael W. Noble this week to 50 years in prison for shooting Mikhail Binion, 37, on June 3, 2022, in the 5000 block of Kensington Avenue in the City’s Academy neighborhood.

 

Binion had come home from work around midnight and saw the car of his ex-girlfriend, Barbara Taylor, 34, parked in front of his apartment with the tailgate open and belongings inside. The front door of his apartment was ajar and Taylor was inside. As he approached the door, Harris emerged from the darkness holding a 9 mm pistol and demanded that Binion give him his wallet and the keys to his car. Harris and another individual who has not been identified then fired a total of 13 shots into Binion’s lower body, got into Binion’s car and drove away. Harris and Taylor are cousins.


A week later, Binion was watching local television news and recognized a photograph of Harris, who had been arrested for an attempted carjacking in the Fairground neighborhood on June 10, 2022, during which a one-year-old child was shot in the back of head. The child survived, but suffered brain damage. Harris was found not guilty in that incident.


Binion contacted police and identified Harris in a photo line-up as one of the men who had shot him. Binion has suffered extensive nerve damage to his left leg, requiring multiple surgeries.


In February, a jury found Harris guilty of first-degree robbery, two counts of armed criminal action, and first-degree assault. Judge Noble sentenced him to serve the sentences for each count consecutively.


The case was prosecuted by Assistant Circuit Attorneys Bret M. Rich and Michael Ware.


“A young man who chose the path of violence will now likely spend the rest of his life in prison,” said Circuit Attorney Gabe Gore. “Our prosecution team did an outstanding job on this case and our community is safer for their efforts.”



###

For Immediate Release

For more information contact:

Amber Raub

Public Information Officer

St. Louis Circuit Attorney's Office

rauba@stlouiscao.org

314-589-6233 (office)

314-312-9912 (cell)

More News

Hyde Park Man Convicted in Murder of Landlord During Eviction Dispute

May 24, 2025
ST. LOUIS, MO (May 23, 2025) — James Cody Jr., 30, was found guilty of second-degree murder and armed criminal action by a jury on Friday for the March 8, 2022, murder of Michael Kelly, 72, in the 3900 block of North 25th Street in the City’s Hyde Park neighborhood. The case stemmed from an ongoing landlord-tenant dispute. Mr. Kelly, the victim, was the landlord of a residence on the 4000 block of North 22nd Street, where Cody’s girlfriend, Deseray Rabb, had stopped paying rent. Despite a court-ordered eviction, Rabb refused to vacate the property. As the legal process unfolded, Cody, who was not listed on the lease but was the father of Rabb’s three children, began threatening Mr. Kelly. On the morning of the murder, surveillance footage captured Cody following Mr. Kelly as he drove to his office. Once parked, Cody was seen approaching the vehicle with a rifle and fatally shooting him. A Nissan Sentra rented under Rabb’s name was spotted in the area and later recovered with ballistic damage concealed by duct tape. Cody was arrested days later at a St. Louis County motel, where he and Rabb were staying with their children. The jury recommended a sentence of 25 years for second-degree murder and 10 years for armed criminal action. Cody’s sentencing is scheduled for June 27, 2025. Deseray Rabb, Cody’s girlfriend and co-defendant, was charged with accessory to first-degree murder and accessory to armed criminal action. She was acquitted by the jury. Tanja Engelhardt, Homicide Unit Chief, and Assistant Circuit Attorneys Timothy Wright and Emily Price prosecuted the case. “This was a ruthless, targeted killing over a lawful eviction. This senseless act of violence has destroyed multiple families. We will relentlessly prosecute those who choose to settle disputes with gun violence to the fullest extent of the law,” said St. Louis Circuit Attorney Gabe Gore. Cody’s case number is 2322-CR01089.

St. Louis Man Sentenced to 10 Years for Shooting Former Girlfriend in the Face

May 19, 2025
Robert Harper, 43, was sentenced following a guilty plea on Monday to 10 years in the Missouri Department of Corrections for first-degree domestic assault and armed criminal action for shooting his former girlfriend.

Man Convicted in Deadly 2021 Triple Shooting in Fairground Neighborhood

May 15, 2025
Charles Anderson, 66, was found guilty by a jury on Thursday of two counts of first-degree murder, one count of first-degree assault, one count of unlawful possession of a firearm, and three counts of armed criminal action in connection to a 2021 shooting that killed two people and injured another in the 2900 block of Kossuth Avenue in the City’s Fairground neighborhood.