60 years to life for Nipsey Hussle killer

A Los Angeles judge Wednesday sentenced the man convicted of gunning down Nipsey Hussle to 60 years to life in prison after hearing testaments to the immense cost of the killing of the hiphop star and neighborhood leader, and of the lifetime of mental illness, abuse and struggle of the man who shot him.

Superior Court Judge H. Clay Jacke II handed down the oft-delayed sentence to Eric R. Holder Jr., 33, found guilty of the 2019 first-degree murder of the 33-year-old Grammynominated hip-hop artist outside the clothing store Hussle founded, the Marathon, in the South Los Angeles neighborhood where both men grew up in similar circumstances.

“I am very mindful of what was presented as to Mr. Holder's mental health,” Jacke said. “I am also mindful of the devastation caused to the victims and their families. I believe this sentence balances the two.”

After the monthlong trial, jurors in July also convicted Holder of two counts of attempted voluntary manslaughter and two counts of assault with a firearm for gunfire that hit two other men at the scene who survived.

Jacke sentenced Holder to 25 years to life for the murder, 25 more for a firearm sentencing enhancement and 10 for assault with a firearm. He set several other sentencing additions and ordered that others run concurrent.

He also gave Holder credit for the nearly four years he has served since the shooting.

Holder, dressed in orange jail attire, stared straight ahead throughout the proceedings and did not react when the sentence was read, and spoke only to tell the judge he understood the circumstances when he was asked.

In an impact statement before the sentence was handed down, Herman “Cowboy” Douglas, a close friend of Hussle who was standing with him when he was killed and testified during the trial, told the judge that the killing was a tremendous loss both for him personally and for the South Los Angeles community where Hussle was a business leader and an inspiration.

“Nipsey was my friend. He was like a son, he was like a dad,” Douglas said. “Our community right now, we lost everything, everything we worked for. One man's mistake, one man's action, messed up a whole community.”

Douglas said Hussle's store and surrounding businesses that he owned and supported have been closed down, and it has meant that “the homies don't have nothing to do.”

Douglas told the judge, “I don't care what you give this guy. It ain't about the time. I just want to know why. The world wants to know why. Why someone would do that?”

Actor Lauren London, Hussle's partner and mother of his two young children, did not attend any part of the trial, nor did any of his relatives, and none gave similar impact statements.

Hussle, whose legal name is Ermias Asghedom, and Holder had known each other for years growing up as members of the Rollin' 60s in South LA. Both were aspiring rappers. But Holder never found the same success as Hussle, who would become a local hero and a national celebrity.

The evidence against Holder was so overwhelming that his attorney conceded during trial that he had shot Hussle.