Brooklyn Park Murder Case Closes: Mom Valesha Parker Jailed for Sheltering Son

Valesha Parker, mother of Erick Haynes, received 364 days in jail and a stayed 50-month prison sentence Friday in Hennepin County District Court, marking the end of prosecutions in the November 8, 2022, slaying of 23-year-old Zaria McKeever. Parker had pleaded guilty March 25, 2026, to one count of aiding an offender after the fact, down from four felony counts filed in 2024. She admitted lying to investigators and sheltering her son at an Extended Stay Hotel in nearby Brooklyn Center, where police later recovered the murder weapon.

Haynes, McKeever's ex-partner and father of their 1.5-year-old daughter, orchestrated the attack after weeks of harassing McKeever over her new boyfriend. He armed two juveniles, including 15-year-old Foday Kamara, and drove the getaway car after they kicked in McKeever's apartment door in the 5400 block of 79th Avenue North. The teens shot McKeever five to nine times, including point-blank to the head; her boyfriend escaped by jumping from a window. Haynes drew life in prison after pleading guilty to first-degree murder.

Kamara pleaded guilty to second-degree intentional murder and got over 10 years. Haynes' sister Eriana Haynes received 41 months for aiding an offender, while her partner Tavion James got 364 days with a stayed 42-month sentence. One teen accidentally shot his brother in the foot during the chaos. Kamara later told police Parker was present when he admitted the shooting and overheard plans to hide the gun.

Attorney General Keith Ellison hailed the sentencings as justice for McKeever, a Brooklyn Park resident whose death stunned the north Twin Cities suburb. The case underscores rising gun violence in Hennepin County, where homicides spiked in 2022 amid post-pandemic trends.