'You ripped my whole heart out,' mother of slain basketball player tells admitted killer at sentencing

The mother of a Monroe University basketball player sobbed, "You ripped my whole heart out!" in a Nassau courtroom Tuesday as she faced her daughter’s admitted killer, who was sentenced to 20 years to life in prison for the fatal shooting.

Jacob McMillan, 18, of Baldwin, shed his own tears as Monique Baldwin recounted the pain of losing her daughter, "her twin," Amira McCleod, 19, of St. Albans, Queens, when McMillan opened fire outside a house party on Nov. 22.

"Why [did] you take my baby?" cried Baldwin, tears streaming down her face. "You don’t have no remorse, you coward. ... You are ruthless and you are a monster."

McMillan, in his own tearful statement to the court, said, "I take accountability for all my actions, and I meant that from my heart. My intentions were never to hurt anyone."

Acting Supreme Court Justice Helene Gugerty handed down the sentence as part of an agreement between the Nassau County District Attorney's Office and defense attorney Brian Carmody.

McMillan had pleaded guilty to second-degree murder, second-degree attempted murder and criminal possession of a weapon. 

Prosecutors said they had "extensive" video surveillance footage showing McMillan’s movements before and after the killing, including him taking the Long Island Rail Road and a Nassau Inter-County Express bus to the scene of the shooting just before it occurred.

The shooting happened on Nov. 22 at about 10:50 p.m. when McMillan tried to enter a home on Willow Avenue in Hempstead — the site of a house party — but resisted being pat down before entering, prosecutors said.

Instead, McMillan pulled out a gun and fired two shots at the person who tried to pat him down, prosecutors said. That person, who dove behind a car to escape the gunfire, was shot in the arm.

McMillan then started to flee, but turned and fired another shot, which prosecutors said struck another victim in the shoulder before wounding McCleod, who was attending the party with her friends. McCleod was pronounced dead at the scene.

The two other gunshot victims were taken to local hospitals and treated for their injuries, prosecutors said.

McMillan hid in a backyard located one block south of the party for about 10 minutes after the shooting, prosecutors said. He was then picked up by a rideshare, which dropped him off on Coolidge Avenue in Baldwin at a property that abuts his Wales Avenue home, prosecutors said.

The Nassau County Police Department’s Bureau of Special Operations and Homicide Squad arrested McMillan on Dec. 2.

Nassau District Attorney Anne T. Donnelly said after the sentencing that investigators didn’t determine why McMillan was armed and if he had planned to shoot someone at the party. Donnelly said it appeared he was armed because he "thought he was a tough guy."

"This young lady had her whole life ahead of her," said Donnelly. "Amira was an outstanding basketball player, a good student, worked hard and was just in the wrong place at the wrong time. For this defendant to bring a gun to a party, and then feel so free to pull it out and use it, is disturbing."

Donnelly said the plea agreement was reached in consultation with McCleod’s family, who didn’t want to endure a trial.

Several members of McCleod’s family attended McMillan’s sentencing, including her two siblings and uncle.

Her Monroe basketball coach, Damel Ling, told the court how McCleod, who was slated to graduate this past May, initially struggled in her transition to college but quickly rebounded, becoming a leader on the team.

"She never lost that smile; she kept showing up," he said.

Newsday's Janon Fisher contributed to this story.