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KEY POINTS
- A man and woman and their son have been sentenced to life in prison without parole
- They were convicted of murder over the death of a Family Dollar security guard in 2020
- The victim had told the woman’s daughter to leave the store because she did not have a mask
A Michigan couple and their son will spend the rest of their lives behind bars over the fatal shooting of a dollar store security guard in 2020.
Genesee Circuit Court Judge Brian Pickell sentenced Larry Teague, his wife Sharmel Teague and Sharmel’s son Ramonyea Bishop to life in prison without parole Tuesday, newspaper The Flint Journal reported.
The three were convicted of first-degree premeditated murder in connection to the death of Calvin Munerlyn on May 1, 2020.
The 43-year-old was fatally shot while working as a security guard at a Dollar Family store in Flint that day, investigators said.
Moments before the killing, Munerlyn had told Sharmel’s daughter, Brya Bishop, to leave the establishment because she did not have a face mask, according to Genesee County Prosecutor David Leyton.
The United States had around 63,000 COVID-19 deaths at the time, Al Jazeera reported.
Munerlyn’s warning led to an argument with Brya, who later spat on the security guard, surveillance footage of the incident that was played at a weeks-long trial showed.
He ended up chasing Brya into the parking lot of the Dollar Family and tackling her to the ground twice.
Both Sharmel and Brya left the store following the confrontation, but the former told Munerlyn before leaving that they would return, a witness testified.
Larry and Ramonyea later came by the store, with the former telling Munerlyn that he had “disrespected” his wife.
Footage from Family Dollar showed Ramonyea then shooting Munerlyn in the back of the victim’s head.
A jury convicted Larry and Ramonyea of first-degree premeditated murder and felony firearm last Nov. 10.
Meanwhile, Brya, who was charged with tampering with evidence, lying to police and being an accessory to a felony, was sentenced the same month to time served and probation, NBC News reported.
Following Tuesday’s sentencing, Latryna Sims, Munerlyn’s partner, wrote in a GoFundMe page that raised funds in his honor, “JUSTICE HAS BEEN SERVED!” according to the New York Post.
Matthew Smith, the assistant prosecuting attorney handling the case at sentencing, for his part, remarked, “I’ve never seen three more deserving individuals (of life in prison).”
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