A 17-year-old male charged in connection with the 2025 fatal shooting of Cianna Lee has been waived up to Criminal Court and will be prosecuted as an adult.
Willie Shuler, of Jersey City, is charged with Murder in violation of N.J.S.A. 2C:11-3a(1), a crime of the first degree; Attempted Murder in violation of N.J.S.A. 2C:5-1a(1) and 2C:11-3a(1), a crime of the first degree; Aggravated Assault in violation of N.J.S.A. 2C:12-1b(1), a crime of the second degree; Possession of a Weapon for an Unlawful Purpose in violation of N.J.S.A. 2C:39-4a(1), a crime of the second degree; and Unlawful Possession of a Weapon in violation of N.J.S.A. 2C:39-5b(1), a crime of the second degree.
On January 18, 2025, shortly after 11:00 p.m., the Jersey City Police Department was notified of a shooting in the area of Martin Luther King Drive and Union Street in Jersey City. Responding officers located two female victims with apparent gunshot wounds inside of a motor vehicle on Oak Street. The first victim – later identified as Cianna Lee, 15, of Jersey City – was transported to Jersey City Medical Center where she was pronounced dead shortly after 1:20 a.m. on January 19, 2025. The second victim, a 37-year-old female relative of Lee, was transported to Jersey City Medical Center where she was treated for a nonfatal gunshot wound.
The above charges are merely accusations and the defendant is presumed innocent until proven guilty. R.P.C.3.6(b)(6)