Tulsa Man Found Guilty Of First Degree Murder

A Tulsa County Jury finds a 22-year-old man guilty of first-degree murder for shooting and killing a woman in a fit of road rage.

Julian Zavaleta is facing life in prison for killing Shantel Jones in the AutoZone parking lot near 51st and Peoria in August of 2022.

The jury deliberated for three hours before reaching a verdict. They also had the option to convict Zavaleta of manslaughter or find him not guilty because of self-defense, but the jury chose murder. Shantel's sister says she's relieved to finally see her sister get the justice she deserves.

Prosecutors say the eyewitnesses were crucial to this case. Three of them had very similar stories about what happened: Zavaleta closely followed the victim into the parking lot, blocked her in with his car, and then, as the victim got out of her car and started walking toward Zavaleta, he shot her. The eyewitnesses said the victim didn't show aggression, didn't seem threatening, and didn't have a gun.

Zavaleta testified he shot the victim in self-defense because he says she side-swiped his car in traffic, then threatened to kill him. Zavaleta said he feared for his life and thought the victim was reaching for a gun, but prosecutors say the surveillance video clearly shows the victim calmly walking with her hands at her side. Zavaleta sped away after shooting the victim and said he did so because he was scared.

Prosecutors say being involved in a fender bender isn't a reason to kill someone.

"Certainly, his age was a difficulty; he didn’t have any prior history, and he does something shocking and violent and just takes someone’s life in an instant over something petty because she cut him off in traffic. It is certainly shocking, but he took someone’s life, and it was clearly a murder in the first degree. I think the jury got it right,” said Tulsa County Assistant DA John Tjeerdsma.

Shantel's sister says for the last 16 months, they haven't been able to start healing because they've been dreading sitting through this trial and reliving all of the details, but she says the healing starts today.

"A part of us is gone. A part of us is missing. Every day, we miss her. Life will never be the same without her, but this helps just a small bit,” said Shanel.

Zavaleta was also found guilty of using a vehicle to discharge a weapon, and the jury recommended 25 years, which was the age of Shantel when she was killed.

Zavaleta's attorney told News On 6 that he didn't have any comment following the verdict.

Previous Coverage: Tulsa Man Takes The Stand In His Murder Trial