CHARLESTON, W.Va. (AP) - A West Virginia man who pleaded guilty to shooting and wounding a witness in a murder case has been sentenced.
The Charleston Gazette-Mail reports Kanawha Circuit Judge Charles King on Wednesday sentenced 21-year-old Trashawn Dezour Mills to between six and 30 years in prison, exceeding the recommended sentence.
Prosecutors say Mills, 19-year-old Marland Eugene Clark and 22-year-old Tequan Pratt were riding in a car together before Mills shot Jaylnn Stephenson last May. Stephenson is a witness in a 2016 killing in which Pratt’s brother is charged.
Mills said there were “no excuses” for the crime. Prosecutor Maryclaire Akers asked King to make an example of Mills, to discourage witness intimidation.
Clark took a plea deal last month, but failed to appear for sentencing. Pratt’s attorneys are pursuing a plea deal.
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Information from: The Charleston Gazette-Mail, http://wvgazettemail.com.
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