Merriweather sentenced to 40 years in shooting of nonprofit president

JACKSON, Tenn. — A Jackson man has been sentenced to 40 years in prison after pleading guilty to shooting the president of a local nonprofit.

Photo: Merriweather appears in court, 2021

28-year-old Patrick Merriweather was previously accused of shooting Saving The Animals Together President Wendy Pickett on August 22, 2020.

According to a press release, Pickett was visiting a vacant family property in east Jackson when she discovered Merriweather inside the house. She called local law enforcement and he was cited with criminal trespassing and released by authorities.

That’s when Merriweather allegedly returned to the property and shot Pickett with her own gun before fleeing the scene.

Police located Merriweather approximately 30 minutes later on Airways Boulevard in possession of Pickett’s property. Pickett was treated for her injuries and survived the incident.

A Madison County Grand Jury indicted Merriweather on July 6, 2021, on charges of attempted first degree murder with serious bodily injury, especially aggravated robbery, theft, retaliation for a past action, criminal trespassing, employing a firearm during the commission of a dangerous felony while having a prior conviction for a violent felony, and possession of a firearm after having been convicted of a felony involving violence.

A release states he had also been previously convicted of crimes including robbery, burglary, and vandalism.

On March 7, 2022, Merriweather pled guilty to the indictment. He now faces 40 years in the Tennessee Department of Correction without the possibility of parole.

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