On July 14, 2023, after a multi-day trial, a St. Mary Parish jury unanimously convicted
Jayden Vongchanh, 17, of manslaughter.
The trial was held in St. Mary Parish after a March 2023 trial in Iberia Parish resulted in a deadlocked jury.
On December 13, 2020, Vongchanh and his friends went to a party in Iberia Parish. After Vongchanh’s group became disruptive, they were told to leave the property. As Vongchanh’s group was getting in their car to leave, Vongchanh pulled out a handgun and shot Liam McDuff, a 19-year-old LSU student. McDuff died as a result of his wounds.
Shortly after, Vongchanh made a social media post boasting about the shooting.
At the time of the shooting, Vongchanh had escaped from a juvenile facility in Baton Rouge and had been on the run for almost 60 days. Further, as a juvenile, Vongchanh was prohibited from possessing a handgun.
Vongchanh was a juvenile at the time of the offense, but due to the seriousness of the charges, he was tried as an adult. Although the crime occurred in Iberia Parish, the case was transferred to St. Mary Parish and heard by a St. Mary Parish jury.
Shortly after the jury announced the verdict, 16th Judicial District Attorney Bo Duhe’ told KQKI News, “I am very proud of my staff for the case they presented and grateful Mr. & Mrs. McDuff to have some finality to this chapter of this devastating and senseless violent act against their child.”
A sentencing hearing is set before the Honorable Curtis Sigur on September 7, 2023. The sentencing exposure for manslaughter is up to 40 years at hard labor.
Assistant District Attorneys Cynthia Spadoni and Ashley Hammons prosecuted the case with assistance from Brady Holtzclaw.
The Iberia Parish Sheriff’s Office investigated, with assistance from multiple other agencies including the Attorney General’s Office, Louisiana State Police, and the New Iberia Police Department.