Second Woman Allegedly Killed Project Pat’s Son As A Teen

A second woman has been arrested and accused of murdering his 21-year-old son Patrick Houston Jr., son of Project Pat.

Jermiesia Franklin, 18, has been indicted in connection with the January 2025 killing of Houston, adding another defendant to a case already headed toward trial. She was only 16 when Houston was killed.

Franklin faces two counts of first-degree murder, aggravated robbery and tampering with or fabricating evidence, according to reports citing court records. Prosecutors allege Franklin fatally shot Houston and took his cellphone.

The new development significantly changes the picture surrounding a case that has remained under investigation for more than a year.

Houston, the son of Memphis Hip-Hop veteran Project Pat, was found shot to death Jan. 10, 2025 near Ketchum Road and Long Street in Memphis. Police responded to a shooting call and discovered the 21-year-old dead at the scene.

Authorities spent months investigating before another woman, Talia Jones, emerged as a suspect.

A warrant was issued for Jones on June 27, 2025 on a charge of facilitation of first-degree murder. The U.S. Marshals Service eventually tracked Jones to Minneapolis, where members of the North Star Fugitive Task Force arrested her July 15.

Now prosecutors allege Franklin, not Jones, was the person who actually fired the fatal shots.

Franklin is being held on a $5 million bond and her case is proceeding in adult court. Court records cited in recent reports also show Franklin faces charges connected to separate incidents that allegedly occurred before Houston’s death.

In one September 2024 case, Franklin is accused of firing into an unoccupied residence. Prosecutors also allege she tried to kill another woman on Christmas Eve 2024. Franklin was 16 during those alleged incidents as well.

Those allegations are separate from Houston’s killing and Franklin is presumed innocent unless proven guilty.

Franklin and Jones are scheduled to return to court Sept. 16, with proceedings in the Houston murder case currently set for Sept. 21.

The approaching court date means a killing that began with Houston found dead inside a vehicle on a snowy Memphis day could soon move from police investigation and sealed legal maneuvering into a courtroom, where prosecutors will have to prove what happened and what role each defendant allegedly played.