The murder of Jumar Joiner
Hartford, Hartford County, Connecticut · 2008
Overview
Jumar Joiner, a 25-year-old man from Windsor, Connecticut, was fatally shot on May 3, 2008, in the area of West Morningside Street in Hartford. According to the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner, he suffered multiple gunshot wounds. In the days, weeks, and months after the killing, investigators followed up on tips and leads but made no arrest, and the case went cold for nearly a decade. In 2017, the Connecticut Division of Criminal Justice's Cold Case Unit received new leads through its tip line, including the names of two men who told police they had witnessed the shooting. That witness information helped lead to the March 2022 arrest of Mark White, who was then in custody in New Mexico on unrelated illegal-handgun and cocaine charges. A Hartford Superior Court jury found White guilty of murder on March 7, 2025, and on June 6, 2025, he was sentenced to 40 years in prison with credit for about six months already served.
How it was solved
For nearly ten years, the fatal shooting of Jumar Joiner in Hartford had no answer. The case broke not through forensic science but because two people who had seen the shooting eventually came forward. After Joiner was killed on May 3, 2008, Hartford investigators chased tips and leads in the days, weeks, and months that followed, but no arrest was made and the file went cold. The turning point came in 2017, when the Division of Criminal Justice's Cold Case Unit received new leads through its tip line. Among those leads were the names of two men who told police they had witnessed the shooting. That witness information advanced the investigation and helped lead to the arrest of Mark White, of Albuquerque, New Mexico, in March 2022. White was already in New Mexico law-enforcement custody at the time on unrelated charges of illegal handgun possession and cocaine possession. The case was prosecuted by Senior Assistant State's Attorney Robin Krawczyk and Executive Assistant State's Attorney Lisa M. D'Angelo. On March 7, 2025, a Hartford Superior Court jury found White guilty of murder under Connecticut General Statutes section 53a-54a. On June 6, 2025, Judge Nuala E. Droney sentenced White to 40 years in prison, with credit for roughly six months he had already served. Chief State's Attorney Patrick J. Griffin announced both the conviction and the sentence.
Sources
- Mark White Convicted of 2008 Cold Case Murder of Jumar Joiner in Hartford
“In 2017, the Division of Criminal Justice's Cold Case Unit's tip line received new leads in the case, including the names of two men who told police they witnessed the shooting, which helped result in the March 2022 arrest of White.”
- Mark White Sentenced for 2008 Cold Case Murder of Jumar Joiner in Hartford
“Mark White, 47, of Albuquerque, New Mexico, was sentenced to 40 years in prison with six months of jail credit by the Honorable Nuala E. Droney for the May 3, 2008 fatal shooting of Jumar Joiner, 25, of Windsor.”
- Man Convicted In 2008 Hartford Cold Case Killing Of Windsor Man: State
“The tip line yielded new leads, including identification of two witnesses who told police they saw the shooting; the witness information led to Mark White's arrest in March 2022 while he was in New Mexico custody on illegal handgun and cocaine charges.”
- Cold Case Killer Who Murdered Windsor Man In Hartford Sent To Prison: State
“Mark White, 47, of Albuquerque, New Mexico, was sentenced to 40 years in prison with six months jail credit; two men who witnessed the shooting provided names to police that helped advance the investigation.”
- Albuquerque man sentenced for 2008 Hartford murder
“The case remained unsolved for years until 2017, when the Cold Case Unit received new leads through its tip line, including names of two witnesses to the shooting, leading to White's arrest in March 2022 while he was in New Mexico custody on weapons and cocaine charges.”
- Man Guilty Of 2008 Hartford Cold Case Murder Sentenced To 40 Years in Prison: State
“Joiner's family wrote that he had a great outlook on life and the possibilities his future held; he was employed in his family's construction business and was pursuing a real estate license.”
- New Mexico man convicted in Hartford homicide that went cold for nearly 10 years
“Joiner, 25, of Windsor was shot on May 3, 2008, in the West Morningside Street area of Hartford; friends transported him to a hospital where he was pronounced dead, and the medical examiner determined he suffered multiple gunshot wounds. White was held on a $1.5 million bond.”
- Albuquerque man convicted of 2008 Hartford murder
“Mark White, 47, of Albuquerque, New Mexico, was found guilty of murder in the 2008 fatal shooting of Jumar Joiner, 25, of Windsor, in Hartford; a Hartford Superior Court jury convicted him on March 7, 2025.”