December 12, 2025 / 4:43 PM EST / AP
The last of 10 inmates captured after a high-profile New Orleans jail escape was sentenced Friday to two life terms for a 2018 double murder, with the judge sharply criticizing him for the disruption caused by his months on the run.
Derrick Groves, 28, appeared in a New Orleans courtroom in shackles and an orange jumpsuit, two months after investigators found and arrested him hiding beneath a house in Atlanta. Groves was among a group who fled a local jail in May by crawling through a hole behind a toilet; graffiti left at the facility read To Easy LoL.
A jury last year convicted Groves of two counts of second-degree murder in the fatal shooting of Jamar Robinson and Byron Jackson at a 2018 Mardi Gras party. He was also found guilty of two counts of attempted murder for wounding others in that incident; Judge Dennis Waldron ordered two consecutive 50-year sentences for those convictions to run on top of the life terms. In a separate case last year, Groves pleaded guilty to manslaughter in two other fatal shootings.
Waldron condemned Groves’ escape and the broader harm of his crimes, saying the defendant’s actions caused ‘‘concern, disappointment, frustration and displeasure’’ and compounded tragedy already present in his family history. The judge referenced the 1994 slaying of Groves’ grandmother, Kim Groves, which prosecutors say was ordered by a corrupt New Orleans police officer after she reported misconduct.
‘‘He chose to not honor the memory of his grandmother,’’ the judge said, accusing Groves of willfully choosing violence instead. Prosecutors noted the totality of killings and attempted killings in imposing the stiff sentences.
Kadijah Jackson, sister of victim Byron Jackson, addressed the court, describing how she found her brother dying in a car after Groves fired an AK-style rifle. Jackson said she sends photos of Groves to his young daughter so the child will know she once had a father. ‘‘That moment shattered something inside me,’’ she said, sobbing, and described a sense of loss that has persisted since the shooting.
During the hearing Groves occasionally smirked and nodded at the defense table and later stared toward victims’ supporters. The judge pointed to video taken after Groves’ capture that showed him smiling and blowing kisses while being led away, calling that behavior a final act of defiance and a sign of a lack of remorse.
Groves’ lawyer, Peter Freiberg, said his client maintains his innocence and intends to appeal the convictions. Freiberg also expressed sympathy for the victims’ families. The sentences conclude the latest chapter in an escape that drew national attention and led to a months-long manhunt.