SAN DIEGO, CA – Two men have entered guilty pleas for their involvement in a tragic drive-by shooting at a La Jolla house party. The shooting resulted in the death of a young woman and left three others injured. Odyssey Sellers Carrillo, 23, and Malik Joshua Campbell, 24, admitted to charges of voluntary manslaughter and other offenses in connection with the incident that occurred on June 23, 2019.
Prosecutors have indicated that the shooting, which took the life of 20-year-old Nina Silver, was driven by gang-related motivations. Tragically, Silver was not the intended target of the attack. Initially facing murder charges, both Carrillo and Campbell opted to plead guilty this week, avoiding a trial scheduled for them.
As the legal process moves forward, the two defendants are set to be sentenced in July. Carrillo is expected to receive a 35-year prison term, while Campbell is looking at a 24-year sentence, according to the San Diego County District Attorney’s Office. The San Diego police reported that the shooting incident took place around 12:30 a.m. and involved a light-colored sedan driving north in the alley where the victims were located.
Carrillo, believed to be the shooter by prosecutors, was apprehended in July 2019 following a high-speed chase by law enforcement. Campbell, on the other hand, was taken into custody two months later. In addition to the manslaughter charges, Carrillo pled guilty to attempted murder and assault charges related to the use of a semi-automatic firearm. Campbell, on the other hand, admitted to three assault charges.
The community continues to mourn the loss of Nina Silver and the impact of this senseless act of violence on the victims and their families. The guilty pleas bring some closure to a tragic chapter in La Jolla’s history but serve as a reminder of the ongoing efforts needed to combat gang-related crimes and ensure public safety in the region, as authorities work to bring justice for the victims.