Two men face mandatory life sentences after convictions in 2023 North Minneapolis shooting death

Verdicts in targeted killing

Two men convicted in the December 2023 shooting death of Mikiyel Deshone Patton in north Minneapolis are expected to receive mandatory life sentences under Minnesota law, following guilty verdicts on first-degree premeditated murder.

A Hennepin County jury found Lavester Tremaine Breham, 34, and Dandre Franklin, 36, guilty of first-degree premeditated murder and second-degree intentional murder for Patton’s death. A first-degree premeditated murder conviction carries a mandatory sentence of life in prison without the possibility of release.

What investigators say happened

The killing occurred on Dec. 19, 2023. Police responded around 6:35 p.m. to North Newton Avenue near Oak Park Avenue, where Patton was found shot in the front passenger seat of a Honda CR-V parked along the street. Patton died at the scene.

Court records describe Patton suffering five gunshot wounds to the head and neck area. Investigators treated the case as a targeted shooting rather than a random act, based on the location of the wounds and the evidence developed during the investigation.

Evidence presented to the jury

Authorities built the case around multiple categories of evidence, including video, phone-location analysis, and DNA testing. Surveillance footage from the area where Patton was found, along with video tied to a residence in Brooklyn Park where the two men were known to stay, showed both defendants cleaning the Honda CR-V roughly two hours before the shooting, according to court documents.

Investigators also analyzed cellphone data that placed both men at the scene around the time of the killing, court filings state. DNA testing tied both defendants to the vehicle, and investigators also documented the recovery and testing of discharged cartridge casings connected to the shooting.

• Surveillance video showing activity involving the vehicle before the killing
• Cellphone location data placing the defendants near the scene
• DNA evidence linking the defendants to the CR-V
• Recovered discharged cartridge casings documented in court filings

Sentencing and what comes next

Sentencing was scheduled for Jan. 15, 2026. With the first-degree premeditated murder convictions, the court is required to impose life without the possibility of release. The second-degree intentional murder convictions reflect the jury’s finding that the killing was intentional, while the first-degree verdict establishes premeditation as defined by Minnesota law.

In Minnesota, first-degree premeditated murder is punished by a mandatory sentence of life in prison without the possibility of release.

The case highlights how modern homicide investigations increasingly rely on layered, corroborating evidence—particularly video, digital location data, and forensic testing—to reconstruct events and connect suspects to a crime scene beyond eyewitness accounts.