MEDFORD, Ore. (Feb. 13, 2026) — A Jackson County man was sentenced Friday to life in prison for the fatal shooting of a local laundromat worker in 2024, the Jackson County District Attorney’s Office announced.
Jesus Armando Pena, Jr., 20, was found guilty of second-degree murder on February 12, 2026, following a three-day bench trial before Jackson County Circuit Court Judge Christine Herbert. Pena waived his right to a jury trial before proceedings began. At sentencing, Judge Herbert ordered Pena to serve a minimum of 25 years before becoming eligible for parole.
The case stems from a January 27, 2024, shooting at Weldon’s Cleaning Center, 644 Crater Lake Avenue in Medford. Medford Police responded shortly before 6 p.m. to reports of gunfire and found 51-year-old Justin William Keaton dead inside the laundromat with multiple gunshot wounds. Investigators recovered 12 9mm shell casings leading from the entrance to Keaton’s body.
Surveillance footage reviewed by detectives showed Pena arriving at the laundromat earlier in the day. The video shows Keaton entering and opening a dryer Pena had been using, causing a clothing item to fall. As Keaton began replacing the item with his back turned, Pena entered the laundromat, raised a handgun, and fired repeatedly.
“Based on the surveillance footage and physical evidence at the scene, Mr. Pena continued to fire after Mr. Keaton was on the ground,” the DA’s office said. Two mushroomed 9mm bullets were found beneath Keaton’s body, with corresponding impact marks in the concrete floor, consistent with Pena firing downward while standing over him. Video footage also showed Pena exiting the laundromat with the handgun, which was empty, before fleeing the scene.
Investigators determined that Keaton had approached Pena twice outside the laundromat earlier that day, while Pena waited for his clothes to dry. Pena reportedly told Keaton multiple times to leave him alone. Authorities found no credible evidence that Keaton threatened Pena during these encounters, though they may have contributed to the tension leading up to the shooting.
Pena was arrested January 30, 2024, in Grants Pass. The firearm used in the shooting was recovered February 3, 2024, from a creek near his parents’ residence in Medford. At the time of the murder, Pena was an escapee from the Oregon Youth Authority, having fled a transitional facility on December 6, 2023.
Pena’s juvenile record shows a history of violent offenses, including assaults in 2018, 2020, 2022, and 2023.
At sentencing, Jackson County District Attorney Patrick Green highlighted Pena’s violent history and questioned his claims of acting in self-defense. “I believe Mr. Pena’s trial testimony – claiming he acted out of fear and in self-defense – was perjured testimony,” Green said. “Given these factors, I have strong doubt that Mr. Pena can ever be rehabilitated. If he presents the same false narrative to the Board of Parole in the future, he will struggle to persuade them to grant parole. And certainly, if I am still around then, I will recommend to them that Mr. Pena never be granted parole if that is the case.”
The DA’s office thanked the Medford Police Department for their work on the case and for helping secure justice for Keaton’s family and friends.
The case was prosecuted by District Attorney Patrick Green and Deputy District Attorney Samantha Blount.
Click here for Medford Alert News’ on scene coverage of the incident in 2024.
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