‘There's No Justice': South Florida Family Outraged Over Sentencing in Fatal Shooting

A South Florida family is expressing outrage over what they believe was a light sentence for a man involved in a fatal shooting.

"I felt a lot of darkness in that courtroom," Catherine Jackson Rengifo said. "I just feel very disappointed in the system right now."

Jackson Rengifo and other family members were in a Miami-Dade courthouse Thursday when emotions boiled over at a hearing for the man who shot her daughter.

Giselle Rengifo, 17, was shot in the head and killed at a house party in May 2020.

The suspect, 20-year-old Michael McGowan, who was 17 at the time, confessed to pulling the trigger but maintained the shooting was an accident.

On Thursday, McGowan was sentenced to a year in jail, which was reduced to time served, meaning he'll be released next month.

He was also sentenced to several months of boot camp and four years of probation.

Family members called the sentencing unfair and made their displeasure known at the courthouse, leading to a heated confrontation with officers.

"This is what you call justice over here?" Jackson Rengifo said. “There’s no justice, no justice.”

Sister Salomes Rengifo-Jackson said the family has been waiting for two years for justice that they didn't get.

"We’re gonna let you know how we feel. Cause we know that you did wrong by us," she said.

Rengifo-Jackson has been using her platform on social media and as a VH1 reality star to shed light on her sister's case. She said Giselle Rengifo had dreams of becoming a doctor.

"This guy took her away from us right before she turned 18 so she wasn’t able to graduate from high school to get her diploma," she said.

An attorney for McGowan sent a statement responding to the family's outrage.

“We are aware of the family’s position and understand that believing that this was something more than a tragic accident may help assuage their grief, but unfortunately facts simply do not support that," the statement said. "As we stated in court, that bullet had no one’s name on it. This is a tragedy and an accident and the Judge’s sentence accurately and fairly reflects that."

The family said they believe the shooting was not accidental. They added that they want to find ways to prevent youth gun violence and to keep Giselle's memory alive.

"She was just the light. She was the light of the house, always laughing," her sister said.