17-Year Old To Be Prosecuted As Adult In Connection To 2025 Fatal Shooting

A 17-year-old male, who was 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 according to Acting Hudson County Prosecutor Wayne Mello.

According to Mello, Willie Shuler, of Jersey City, is charged with murder, a crime of the first degree; attempted murder, a crime of the first degree; aggravated assault, a crime of the second degree; possession of a weapon for an unlawful purpose, a crime of the second degree; and unlawful possession of a weapon, a crime of the second degree.

A press release from the Hudson County Prosecutor’s Office states, “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.