Dellwood man sentenced to 18 years in prison for St. Louis murder

ST. LOUIS – A Dellwood man was sentenced Thursday to 18 years in prison for a 2023 murder in the city of St. Louis.

Ta'Shaun L. Patterson, 23, pleaded guilty to second-degree murder and armed criminal action. He was originally charged with first-degree murder, but as part of an agreement with prosecutors, the charge was changed to second-degree murder.

Patterson admitted to shooting 29-year-old Miguel Johnson in the Central West End neighborhood on May 3, 2023.

The indictment states that after an argument at an apartment in the 4400 block of Forest Parkway, Patterson and another man, Syntrell Howard, 22, chased the victim and shot him on the sidewalk near the corner of Laclede and North Taylor Avenue.

Patterson told the judge Thursday that he was trying to break up an argument between Johnson and a woman that led to the shooting.

When the judge asked Patterson about his behavior that day, he said, “It was stupid.”

Howard is charged with first-degree murder, armed criminal action and illegal possession of a firearm. His trial is scheduled for December 2.