Killer sentenced to 2 life terms
An Oklahoma City man who was 17 when he shot a man to death during a drug deal in a Walmart parking lot was sentenced this week to life in prison.
Oklahoma County District Judge Bill Graves sentenced Nicholas Daniel, now 18, to life in prison for first-degree murder for the death of Kendall Dejuan Neal, 26.
Around 2:15 p.m. on Nov. 5, 2017, Neal was found inside a pickup and suffering from a gunshot wound in the parking lot of Walmart at 2000 W Memorial Road in Oklahoma City.
Neal was taken to a hospital where he later died.
Investigators searched the pickup and found Neal’s cellphone, which contained text messages between Neal and Daniel, including one that said to meet at Walmart minutes before Neal was found, according to a court affidavit.
Daniel, who has an 11th-grade education, pleaded guilty to firstdegree murder and robbery with a firearm. He chose to let Graves decide his sentence.
Graves also imposed a sentence of life in prison for the robbery with a firearm. The sentence will run concurrently with the sentence for murder.
Prosecutors said Daniel got into Neal’s truck expecting to buy a pound of marijuana. Daniel became upset when Neal showed him an ounce of marijuana to inspect, prosecutors said.
Daniel then shot Neal with a pistol, prosecutors said. The bullet entered Neal’s armpit. Neal tried to drive away from Daniel, but passed out, causing his foot to hit the gas pedal and sending his truck careening through the Walmart and crashing into an awning.
Neal attended Edmond Santa Fe High School and ran Lion Head Salon on Lincoln Boulevard in Edmond.
In asking for the toughest sentence, Assistant District Attorney Dan Pond told the judge he had previously counseled Daniel to stop his criminal behavior.