Phoenix murder suspect pleads guilty

A suspect in a Phoenix murder case reached a plea deal Friday. Shannon Young was one of three suspects arrested in connection with the death of Jake Kelly. The 49-year-old was found in August 2023 with “blunt force trauma” in his own driveway near Bell and Cave Creek roads.

Jake's family said Shannon Young and her husband Cory Young were his roommates. Both were charged with hindering prosecution. A third person, Angel Mullooly, is the only one charged with Jake's murder.

After Young and Mullooly's arrest, court documents revealed messages and calls made the night Jake was attacked. The same documents also state that the Youngs allegedly carried Jake from the driveway of their home into a bathtub before leaving him on a couch, where he remained without medical attention for nearly 18 hours.

On Friday, Shannon pleaded guilty to first-degree hindering prosecution. Prosecutors subsequently told ABC15 that she could face up to five years of probation under her agreement.

“Friends and roommates, yes, he loved her,” Jake's mother, Jan Kelly, said outside court. “He would have done anything for her.”

ABC15 is working to obtain a copy of this plea agreement, but our team has been told that Shannon could face prison time. The final decision will be made by the sentencing judge on December 4th.

“The only good thing about the plea deal is that she got to say she’s guilty because she is,” Jan said.

Jan is now curious to see what happens to the other defendants who have not changed their pleas by Friday.

Cory is already a convicted felon and has been in prison for over a decade. ABC15 previously reported sources and experts who told our team that Cory's social media publicly displays images of his chest covered in tattoos associated with white supremacy.

When ABC15 first spoke with Jan, she told us that Jake was gay and was worried he might have been targeted for that reason.

Her ultimate goal is justice for her son.

“I said I would be 78 this month,” Jan said, “so if I do that, I’ll be happy with that.”

The trial date in this case is set for December 11th.