15 years for drug-deal death

Lake Superior Court Judge Diane Ross Boswell sentenced a Chicago man to 15 years in prison on Friday for voluntary manslaughter in a marijuana deal that went awry in Hammond.

Barrington Rhodes, 46, apologized to the family of Clyde Lee, who was found lying halfway out of his van on Dec. 22, 2009, in the parking lot of the Walmart, 1828 165th St., in Hammond.

In court Dec. 12, Rhodes admitted when he was questioned by defense attorney Matthew Fech that he and Lee had been in communication for a month or two about a drug deal and eventually agreed to meet at the Hammond store. While Rhodes was buying drugs from Lee, a struggle ensued over a gun that Lee, a security guard, had in his possession. The gun discharged and Lee was wounded in the left abdomen.

Court records indicate that Rhodes was identified as a suspect in the case through DNA analysis on a knit hat found at the crime scene. He was charged in January 2013, more than three years after the homicide.