For Immediate Release:
April 3, 2023
For press inquiries only, contact:
Cameron Mixon (334) 242-7491
Attorney General Steve Marshall Announces Court of Criminal Appeals Upholds Murder Convictions in Lee County
(MONTGOMERY) Attorney General Steve Marshall announced that the Alabama Court of Criminal Appeals affirmed the murder convictions of Teddy Junior North, age 35, and Jerrell North, age 33, both of Opelika. Both men were convicted in the Lee County Circuit Court on January 28, 2022.
On the night of July 26, 2018, Antonio Drisker and his girlfriend visited a trailer park in Lee County where he got into a verbal confrontation with Teddy North. After the confrontation, Drisker left the scene, but later returned. At this point, Teddy North and Jerrell North demanded cocaine from him. After being physically assaulted by the Norths and a third assailant, Marquerious Canada, Drisker attempted to flee the scene, but Canada shot him six times. Antonio Drisker died at the scene and both Jerrell and Teddy North were subsequently apprehended by police.
Lee County District Attorney Jessica Ventiere’s office successfully prosecuted this case and obtained guilty verdicts. Both Teddy and Jerrell North were sentenced to thirty-eight years in prison for their murder convictions. The Norths sought to have their convictions reversed on appeal.
The Attorney General’s Criminal Appeals Division handled the case during the appeals process, arguing for the Alabama Court of Criminal Appeals to affirm their convictions. The Court did so in a decision issued Friday, March 17, 2023.
Attorney General Marshall commended Assistant Attorneys General Laura Irby Cuthbert and Christopher D. Howell for their successful work on this case and thanked District Attorney Jessica Ventiere and her staff for their valuable assistance in defending the murder convictions.
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