The Springfield man convicted of murdering a transgender woman four years ago was sentenced Thursday, July 10, to 30 years in prison.
Charles Nelson, 32, was found guilty by a Greene County jury in March of second-degree murder and armed criminal action for fatally shooting Dominique Lucious on April 8, 2021.
As reported by the Springfield Daily Citizen, Judge Kaiti Greenwade sentenced Nelson to 22 years for the second-degree murder charge and eight years for the armed criminal action charge. Those sentences must be served consecutively, and he will be given credit for time served in the Greene County Jail.
Nelson Claimed He Shot Lucious Because He Feared for His Life but Prosecutors Called it a ‘Point Blank Execution’
During the trial, Nelson took the stand and testified he was in fear for his life when he fired his gun at Lucious that early spring morning.
Prosecutors, however, called it a “point blank execution.” Lucious was shot about five times, according to the medical examiner who testified at the trial. Two bullets went through her heart and lungs. Either of those shots would have been fatal, the medical examiner testified, and Lucious likely died very quickly.
According to a probable cause statement, law enforcement officers were called to an apartment on North Main Avenue and found a person dead. The person had noticeable gunshot wounds.
That same day, detectives interviewed someone living at the address who said Lucious stayed at the apartment overnight and in the morning said she was expecting someone to stop by the apartment.
The resident said he went back to sleep but later awoke to the sound of gunshots. He reported seeing a man standing in the living room, noticing Lucious’s body on the couch. He told authorities he grabbed his phone and took photos of the man’s car as it drove away.
According to detectives, surveillance video gathered from a nearby business shows a car identical to the vehicle in those photos heading east on Central Street, toward Main Avenue.
Nelson, Lucious Met on a Dating App
During a search of the apartment, investigators found what family confirmed to be Lucious’ cell phone. During a search of the phone, investigators located text messages between Lucious and a number later linked to Nelson. Nelson and Lucious met and began communicating that morning via Plenty of Fish, a dating app.
In what was described as a “flurry” of messages and photos exchanged, the two discussed Nelson bringing Lucious $20 worth of marijuana in exchange for a sex act.
According to court documents, Lucious received sexually explicit photos from Nelson. In them, authorities say a unique pair of boxers can be seen. Nelson reportedly wore those same boxers during a search after he was taken into custody.
