‘A very sad case’: Man who killed shopper inside store at South Shore Plaza gets life in prison

DEDHAM, Mass. — A man who was convicted of murder earlier this week in connection with a deadly shooting at the South Shore Plaza in Braintree in 2022 learned his fate Thursday.

Julius Hammond-Desir, of Maynard, who was 19 at the time of the shooting, was sentenced in Dedham’s Norfolk Superior Court to life in prison with the possibility of parole after 25 years for the killing of 26-year-old Dijoun Beasley, of Boston, on Jan. 22, 2022.

“This is a very sad case. This was a killing of Dijoun Beasley, who had many people who loved him and cared for him,” the judge told the court before handing down Hammond-Desir’s sentence. “I know very little about what transpired between the two men or why what transpired, transpired. The evidence at the trial didn’t have much to say about that.”

The judge added, “This was a case that was very much affected by a lack of impulse control. Carrying a firearm into a mall when you’re going shopping when you have no intention or idea that you’re going to meet anybody who is an enemy or an adversary, or someone who is going to pose a risk, is simply bad judgment.”

Hammond-Desir’s sentence comes after a jury on Tuesday found him guilty of first-degree murder. He must also serve 2.5 years on two separate charges with credit for time served since February 2022.

Beasley was shopping with his girlfriend inside Forever 21 on the main floor of the mall when Hammond-Desir fatally shot him in the head.

Police departments from multiple area communities and heavily armed SWAT officers responded to the scene of the shooting, placing the mall on lockdown.

Hammond-Desir fled the mall following the shooting. He was captured weeks later and charged with murder.

Samantha Schwartz, 27, of Attleboro, was also charged with accessory after the fact of murder and carrying a firearm in connection with the incident.

Victim impact statements read in court before Hammond-Desir’s sentence was announced described Beasley as an “outgoing, bright, and caring” man who was passionate about life.

Hammond-Desir, who had been held without bail since his arrest, will be moved out of the Dedham House of Correction into the custody of the Massachusetts Department of Correction.

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