Wearing shackles and a yellow jumpsuit, Tristan Jackson told a Baltimore judge on Tuesday that he would not take a second chance for granted.

Jackson, 20, of Hillen, appeared in the Elijah E. Cummings Courthouse to be sentenced for his role in a mass shooting that happened on July 2, 2023, at Brooklyn Homes, which killed two people and wounded 28 others.

Prosecutors alleged that Jackson fired a gun on 8th Street near Stoll Street in the direction of seven people who were running away or into the air to scare them. His attorneys contended that he never shot a weapon.

Jackson said he wanted to earn his GED diploma, attend Baltimore City Community College and become a licensed social worker who works with young people.

“I want my impact on the world to be positive,” Jackson said.

Circuit Judge Lynn Stewart Mays later sentenced Jackson on charges of conspiracy to commit first-degree assault, second-degree assault, use of a handgun during the commission of a crime of violence and possession of a regulated firearm under 21. He was ordered to serve 45 years in prison, with 35 years suspended, plus five years’ probation.

He’s the last remaining person arrested and charged in the case to be sentenced.

In a statement, Baltimore State’s Attorney Ivan Bates said the sentencing “marks a significant step toward justice for the victims, their families, the community, and our city as a whole.”

“Mr. Jackson will spend this time of his life behind bars, reflecting on his decision to carry and use a firearm in our city,” Bates said. “This case is tremendously complex given its scale, and this outcome reflects our commitment to holding all individuals accountable for their actions on that day.”

Bates said “we will continue to investigate the Brooklyn Day mass shooting and work to hold everyone responsible for the violence that took place that day and shook Baltimore to its core.”

The mass shooting reverberated throughout a city that’s accustomed to violence.

Aaliyah Gonzalez, a recent graduate of Glen Burnie High School, was pronounced dead at the scene. She was 18.

Kylis Fagbemi, a forklift operator who wanted to become a traveling ultrasound technician, died at a hospital. He was 20.

No one has been charged with murder in their deaths.

Baltimore Police released a 173-page report that detailed their ill-fated and hands-off approach leading up to the shooting, which found that one of the factors that could have played a role was officer indifference.

Meanwhile, the Baltimore City Council held oversight hearings.

Assistant State’s Attorney Michael Dunty, chief of the Homicide Division in the Baltimore State’s Attorney’s Office, pushed for the maximum sentence under the plea agreement: 50 years in prison, with 38 years suspended.

Dunty said he appreciated the challenges that Jackson has experienced in his life.

But Jackson, he said, took a gun and fired at “seven unknown individuals.”

At the time, Jackson was on GPS monitoring in an unrelated case for bringing a gun in 2023 to Mergenthaler Vocational Technical High School.

Jackson’s attorneys, Assistant Public Defenders Matthew Connell and Brian Levy, requested the minimum possible sentence under the plea agreement: 25 years in prison, with 20 years suspended.

Levy spoke about how their client endured challenges and overcame adversity in his childhood.

Jackson, he said, experienced housing and educational instability. Both of his parents at various points were incarcerated. And he lost family members and friends to violence — so he started carrying a gun for protection.

From an early age, Jackson worked at a barbershop to provide for his family. He also held jobs at Morgan State University in the cafeteria and the restaurant chain Chili’s, and took part in a paid internship at the Maryland Department of Juvenile Services, Levy said.

Jackson, he said, is “committed to not carrying a gun.”

Meanwhile, Connell noted their client was young when he committed the crime and added that he’s spent two Thanksgivings, two Christmases and two birthdays in jail.

While awaiting trial at the Maryland Reception, Diagnostic and Classification Center, Jackson was also stabbed multiple times with a homemade weapon — including in the right eye.

Connell said he did not want to minimize the horror of the shooting but noted that their client was not accused of hurting anyone.

He estimated that he’s watched surveillance video in the case a hundred times.

“It’s dark, it’s grainy, it’s ambiguous,” Connell said. “Mr. Jackson has always denied firing the gun.”

Jeffrey Jones, an outreach specialist and former youth worker at Roca, a nationally recognized anti-violence nonprofit organization, testified about his interactions with Jackson in the program and stated that he sees potential in him.

“This is a small chapter in his story,” Jones said. “And I’ll be glad when this is all behind him.”

Jackson, he said, has “a lot of life ahead of him.”