BRUNSWICK COUNTY, N.C. (WECT) – The North Carolina Court of Appeals has upheld the first-degree murder convictions in two 2019 shooting deaths in Brunswick County.
Xavier Stevenson and Myla Payne were shot in June 2019 following an argument. Both victims died at the scene.
Logan Young was found guilty of first-degree murder, and Joshua Carter pleaded guilty to one count of accessory after the fact to first-degree murder and one count of attempted robbery with a dangerous weapon in connection with the deaths in 2023.
According to court documents, Young appealed the conviction and argued that second-degree murder should have been considered as a possible alternative, citing intoxication and the argument. He did not challenge that he was the shooter.
The court rejected his appeal, ruling that his clear memory of the incident contradicted extreme impairment and that a verbal argument did not justify a heat-of-passion defense.
Young is serving two life-without-parole sentences in prison.
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