Shonelle Andre Jackson was born on May 30, 1978. Information about his early life is limited. There are no significant details available about his childhood, family, or education.

In 1997, Shonelle Andre Jackson was arrested for the murder of Lefrick Moore during a robbery in Montgomery, Alabama. At the time of his arrest, Jackson was 19 years old. During the investigation, he initially claimed to detectives that he did not know the other three co-defendants and that he was not present when the murder happened.

However, Montgomery Police Detective Andrew Signore learned from other defendants that Jackson had bought a soft drink from a drive-thru shortly before the murder. Detective Signore told Jackson that his fingerprints were found on a Dairy Queen cup inside the victim's stolen vehicle. This information was used to encourage Jackson to admit he knew the other defendants. Eventually, Jackson changed his story to confirm he had been with them earlier and then stated he was present during the murder while armed with a .380 handgun.

After a jury trial, Jackson was found guilty of capital murder. The jury recommended a life sentence, but the judge, William Gordon, chose to impose the death penalty instead. This decision was allowed under Alabama law, which permits a judge to override a jury's sentencing recommendation. Later on, a juror named Jan Burkes expressed doubt about whether Jackson was the one who fired the shot that killed Moore, even though he was one of the four defendants charged with the crime.