TOPEKA, Kan. (AP) A Topeka man ended his murder trial by pleading to a lesser charge in the shooting death of a neighbor.
Thirty-one-year-old LaVance W. Thompson pleaded guilty Wednesday to voluntary manslaughter in the death of 36-year-old James Sanders. The plea came on the third day of Thompson’s trial on a first-degree murder charge.
The Topeka Capital-Journal reports prosecution and defense attorneys agreed to recommend a sentence of eight years and six months.
Sanders died after being shot on Christmas Day 2011 at a Topeka apartment.
Thompson was captured Dec. 27 in Independence, Mo.
Prosecutors say the shooting came after Thompson and Sanders argued about noise and Sanders called police to complain.
