Toledo woman enters plea to involuntary manslaughter

Allison Dunn, The Blade, Toledo, Ohio
·1 min read

Jul. 26—A central Toledo woman pleaded guilty on Monday in Lucas County Common Pleas Court to shooting a man last summer.

Laniesha Walls, 25, of the 1300 block of Buckingham Street, pleaded guilty to involuntary manslaughter, with a one-year firearm specification, for fatally shooting Milton Roberts, 64, of the 1100 block of Fernwood Avenue on June 22, 2020.

She was initially charged with murder and felonious assault, both with gun specifications, and tampering with evidence. Lucas County prosecutors recently filed a bill of information for the involuntary manslaughter charge and the other charges will be dismissed at sentencing on Aug. 16.

Judge Ian English asked Walls why she was entering a guilty plea.

"Because I'm guilty," she responded.

She could face an indefinite sentence of 12 to 17 1/2 years in prison, but prosecutors will recommend a 6-year sentencing cap. If Judge English were to sentence her beyond that recommendation, she would be permitted to withdraw her plea.

Toledo police responded to Norwood and Detroit avenues on June 22, 2020, for the report of a person shot. When they arrived, officers found Roberts in front of a residence in the 1400 block of Norwood.

Roberts died of multiple gunshot wounds, according to an autopsy completed by the Lucas County Coroner's Office.

First Published July 26, 2021, 11:47am

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