Man pleads guilty, sentenced to 17 years, in Middletown woman’s fatal shooting
A week after a trial was set to begin but then postponed, a Middletown man pleaded guilty Tuesday to a lesser charge for the shooting death of a woman last summer at a Howard Avenue residence.
Richard Shelby Adkins, 38, was initially charged with felonious assault on June 11 after shooting a woman when a disagreement between roommates turned violent, according to Middletown police.
The victim, Ciara Cain, 26, was shot in the head at about 2:38 p.m. and was flown to an area hospital, according to police. She died on June 13 at Miami Valley Hospital in Dayton, according to the Montgomery County Coroner’s Office.
A grand jury then returned indictments against Adkins for murder, felonious assault and tampering with evidence.
His trial was scheduled to begin Feb. 5 in Butler County Common Pleas Court, but defense attorney Billy Guinigundo requested and received a continuance, indicating plea negotiations were ongoing.
Adkins pleaded guilty to involuntary manslaughter with a threeyear gun specification and tampering with evidence. Judge Jennifer McElfresh sentenced Adkins to 17 years in prison. He could receive an additional five years, depending on his behavior while incarcerated.
He has been held in the Butler County Jail in lieu of $1 million bond since his indictment.
Butler County Prosecutor Michael Gmoser said the victim’s family and police investigators were consulted before Adkins agreed to the negotiated plea.
“Bad things happen when drugs are part of the equation, but that doesn’t justify someone taking a life,” Gmoser said. He added the evidence in the case indicates there was a large verbal argument among people in the residence. “You have an argument going on and a heated moment when he shot and killed her.”
The plea reflected a definite prison sentence for Adkins, he
Adkins
said.
“Given the heat of the moment situation and that drugs were involved with multiple people arguing, the involuntary manslaughter