17-year-old shot, killed leaving girlfriend’s party, MI cops say. 16-year-old sentenced
A 16-year-old boy will spend decades in prison following the 2023 fatal shooting of an older teen who had offered him and another boy a ride home, Michigan reports say.
Justice Chimner, who was 13 when police say he fired the fatal shots that killed 17-year-old Jack Snyder, was sentenced Monday, March 3, to 35 to 60 years in prison, court records show. Chimner was charged as an adult.
Snyder, a senior at Battle Creek High School, was pronounced dead at the scene following the Feb. 17, 2023, shooting, McClatchy News reported at the time.
He had just left his girlfriend’s birthday party when he offered a ride to two younger boys, according to McClatchy’s reporting. The younger teens tried to steal Jack’s car and shot him twice, Battle Creek Police Sgt. Jeff Case said.
“The victim was trying to be a Good Samaritan by giving them a ride in the cold temperatures,” Case said in a news briefing streamed by WZZM. “I do know that he resisted the carjacking.”
Chimner admitted to shooting Snyder twice, while the other teen said he was a bystander, WWMT reported.
“I deeply regret my poor judgment and harm I caused,” Chimner said during his sentencing hearing, according to WXMI. “This experience has given me significant time to reflect on my actions, and I have come to realize that the severity of my mistake... I am truly sorry for any distress I have caused to the Snyder family, to the court, to the community and anyone who may have been directly impacted.”
The other teen involved in the incident, 14-year-old Dewond Westes III, was sentenced in January following his carjacking conviction, according to WXMI. He received a mix sentence, meaning he will stay in a juvenile home until he turns 18, at which point prison time will be reconsidered.
Snyder was a member of his school’s marching band and swim team, but soccer was considered his true passion, according to his obituary.
“The students and faculty described Jack as light-hearted, charismatic, athletic and humorous. One whom left an indelible mark on all that met him,” the obituary states.
Trinity Walker, Snyder’s cousin, said Chimner’s decision-making the night of the fatal shooting was “careless,” WXMI reported.
“Jack’s choice to help you out of the freezing cold that night was a choice in the favor of the good of this world,” she said. “While you lay alone in your cold cell tonight, I hope that the magnitude of your decision to murder Jack Snyder is so suffocating you cannot breathe.”
Battle Creek is about a 65-mile drive southeast from Grand Rapids.
This story was originally published March 4, 2025 at 11:53 AM with the headline "17-year-old shot, killed leaving girlfriend’s party, MI cops say. 16-year-old sentenced."