20 years in prison for shooting Drive-By Tall Timbers

CONROE, Texas — On Wednesday, January 25, 2023, Gregory Lamar Henderson, 32, was sentenced to 20 years in prison for his role in the drive-by shooting at the Tall Timbers apartments in Conroe, Texas. Assistant District Attorneys Ryan Fuller and Francis Tomasso presented the case.

The jury heard evidence that in the early hours of the morning of December 21, 2021, an apartment at the Tall Timbers complex in Conroe was shelled. At this time, a mother and her four children were sleeping inside. Patrol units and detectives from the Konro Police Department arrived at the scene and collected evidence, including video from security cameras. Careful analysis of the footage showed that a maroon Lexus sedan carrying at least two people drove into the scene and stopped in front of the victim’s apartment at around 2:30 am. Seconds later, CCTV recorded more than a dozen muzzle flashes from the maroon Lexus just before the car sped away.

Investigators collected evidence at the scene and quickly established Henderson’s involvement. Conroe police detectives then obtained a warrant to search the Henderson home. During a search at the crime scene, officers seized Henderson’s mobile phone. After obtaining a second warrant to search the phone, investigators found messages sent and received that indicated that Henderson had been planning this dangerous shooting long before the attack. Investigators also developed evidence of Henderson’s possible motives for planning and committing this crime. namely, that Henderson had a previous quarrel with the brother of the woman whose apartment door he later riddled with shots.

During the punishment phase, the Honorable Judge Lisa Michalk heard evidence of Henderson’s criminal past. This story included a previous trip to prison, which increased the range of his sentences from felony in the third degree, two to ten years in prison, to the range of felony in the second degree, two to twenty years in prison. Judge Michalk also heard evidence from Detective Legge of Cleveland, Ohio, who testified that Henderson was responsible for a separate shooting in his jurisdiction in which the victim was shot five times in the back. Judge Michalk then sentenced Henderson to the maximum sentence allowed under Texas law, which was twenty years in the Texas Department of Corrections. Judge Michalk also found that the allegation that Henderson used or displayed a lethal weapon during this crime was true. As a result, Henderson will not be eligible for parole until he has served at least half of his sentence.

Prosecutor Francis Tommaso: “This case was based on the courage of witnesses willing to tell the truth and good old police work. The Conroe Police Department conducted a thorough and professional investigation of the matter and did so in a manner that would ensure a guilty verdict in court. The people of Tall Timbers in particular, and the people of Montgomery County in general, are safer because of their efforts.

District Attorney Brett Lygon: “It takes a special coward and a particularly dangerous criminal to shoot bullets at a woman sleeping at home with her children. In some places this kind of behavior can be dismissed as everyday life, but in this county it will not be tolerated.”