A man who admitted to being the shooter in a December 2009 murder opted to avoid trial by pleading guilty to lesser charges Thursday in Clark County Superior Court.
Justin Tyler, 22, pleaded guilty to second-degree murder and second-degree assault in connection with the Dec. 1, 2009, death of 45-year-old Clement Adams. Tyler had been charged with first-degree murder and first-degree attempted murder.
Tyler said in a statement read aloud by his attorney, Suzan Clark, that he intentionally fired the fatal shot through the rear window of Adams’ Chrysler sedan because he was trying to scare the vehicle’s passenger, Tyshaun Foreman.
Tyler’s sentencing was scheduled for 1:15 p.m. May 6. In a plea agreement, Clark County Prosecutor Tony Golik and Clark jointly recommended that Tyler receive 32 years in prison.
A deadly weapon enhancement of 10 years figured into the suggested sentence because the case marked Tyler’s second conviction of a serious crime involving a firearm. He is likely to spend an additional 36 months in community custody upon his release.
“If he was convicted as charged, he was facing upwards of 70 years,” Clark said after the hearing of her client’s decision to change his plea. “The risk was just too much.”
Superior Court Judge John Wulle will decide the sentence. Judges typically adopt attorneys’ recommendations, but Wulle is not bound by the plea agreement.
The murder case against 24-year-old Derik L. Maples, who’s being tried separately for his role in Adams’ death, is pending, Golik said.
Driving out of parking lot
Adams was shot while driving a sedan out of the parking lot at the S&S Mart in the Rose Village neighborhood. The attempted murder charge relates to Adams’ passenger, Foreman, who was not injured.
The shooting was a result of a drug deal gone bad, prosecutors have alleged in court documents.
According to court documents, Adams and Foreman drove to the S&S Mart to meet Tyler and Maples to buy some drugs at about 5 p.m. Police said Adams tried to pay for powder cocaine with counterfeit bills, triggering a confrontation with Maples.
When Adams tried to drive out of the parking lot, having failed to get the cocaine, Maples allegedly shouted to Tyler, who was hiding in a nearby alley, to “Dump, Dump, Dump!” according to court documents. Four or five shots were fired, shattering the Chrysler sedan’s rear window.
The sedan continued about 100 feet south, where it crashed into the front steps of a house at 1909 E. 33rd St. Authorities found Adams’ body in the home’s yard.
Maples is being held in the Clark County Jail on $2 million bail.
