Manslaughter Plea Deal

By Molly Kelleher

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Summary

The man accused of accidentally killing his girlfriend has agreed to a plea deal. But is eight enough? Marnicus Lockhard faces eight years in prison for killing 19 year old Tiairra Jo Garcia.

Story Published: Jun 10, 2009 at 5:28 PM PST

PASCO - The man accused of accidentally killing his girlfriend has agreed to a plea deal. But is eight enough?

Marnicus Lockhard faces eight years in prison for killing 19 year old Tiairra Jo Garcia.

Lockhard avoided a trial for first degree manslaughter by pleading guilty to second degree manslaughter.

On the day the trial was supposed to start, the case against Lockhard ended before it even began. A last minute deal means he will serve time for his role in a young woman's death. Instead of the possibility of nearly 30 years in prison, he could get just eight.

"I feel frustrated, angry with mixed emotions," said Tiairra's mom Donna Garcia.

"I think Tiairra's life was worth more than a few years," said friend Ali Beltran.

The deal isn't exactly a confession. It's called an Alford plea. It means Lockhard denied committing the crime, but believed prosecutors had enough evidence to convict him.

The prosecution believes Lockhard was handling the gun when it went off, shooting Tiairra. All sides agree it was an accident, but Lockhard and another man both say the other was holding the gun.

Police have plenty of evidence, DNA and witnesses, but still no body. Making it all the more difficult to convict, but that's no comfort for family and friends.

"I would have rather seen a trial and a jury decision. He took my daughter's life and he gets to live his. That's not fair," said Garcia.

And now this mother who's been through so much has to prepare herself for one more hurdle. She says she will have something to say to Lockhard at his sentencing finding the words will be the hard part.

"I just hope I can do it without breaking down," said Garcia.

As a part of the deal, Lockhard can argue for the bottom of the range of the sentence. That's six years and 10 months.

Meanwhile, Pasco Police are still waiting for the snow cover to clear before they can search for Tiairra's body in Mount Rainer. Tiairra's mother say police are going up in the next couple of weeks.