The man who fatally shot Jacqueline Avant, a philanthropist and wife of music producer Clarence Avant, during a burglary at their home in Beverly Hills, California, was sentenced to 190 years in prison on Tuesday, authorities said.
The man, 30-year-old Ariel Manner of Los Angeles, pleaded guilty before the Los Angeles Supreme Court last month to first-degree murder, attempted murder, possession of a firearm and burglary for the murder of Ms. Avant. 81 years old, and tried to kill her bodyguard, according to a memorandum of sentence.
Mr Mayner stormed Avans’ home in Beverly Hills early on December 1 and shot Ms Avant in the back with a rifle, according to the memorandum. She was at home with her husband, whom police found holding her head to the floor after she was shot. She was pronounced dead in hospital.
While fleeing the Avants’ home, Mr Mayner fired between four and eight shots at an outside guard, but failed, the memorandum said. It is unclear whether he took anything from home.
About an hour after killing Avant, Mr Mayner was arrested for stealing a home in Hollywood, the Beverly Hills Police Department said at the time. He accidentally shot himself in the leg and called 911 on his own cell phone for help, according to the memorandum.
According to the verdict imposed by Judge Catherine Solorzano, Mr. Mayner will not be eligible for parole, the Los Angeles District Attorney’s Office said. He was released on parole at the time of the murder.
Mr Mayner received a lengthy sentence under state law for three repeated offender strikes.
Marcus M. Huntley, Mr Manner’s public defender, declined to comment on Tuesday afternoon. In another memorandum of sentence, he did not explain Mr Manner’s motives, but wrote that his client had become addicted to drugs after spending time in prison on robbery charges.
Beverly Hills police found that the day before the shooting, Mr Manner had used his mobile phone to investigate Mr Avant, the couple’s home and how to use an AR-15 rifle, according to the memorandum of sentence.
A few weeks after Mr Manner killed Ms Avant, he was recorded telling a friend on the phone in prison that he had planned to take $ 50,000 from the couple’s home, the memorandum said. He also laughed at the publicity he was receiving.
“Why are you laughing? This is someone’s life “, it was recorded, says his friend.
Three days later, he told another friend on the phone that he expected a sentence of only 20 or 25 years, according to the memorandum.
In a statement Tuesday, George Gascon, the Los Angeles District Attorney, said Mr. Mayner’s guilty plea helped the Avant family avoid a “traumatic” lawsuit.
“Today marks the end of a tragic incident that shook our community,” he said. “Due to a completely senseless act, Los Angeles lost Jacqueline Avant, a community leader and philanthropist.
A number of prominent artists, athletes and politicians have expressed their condolences after the killing, including Bill Clinton, Al Gore and former Los Angeles Lakers star Magic Johnson.
Ms. Avant, a former model and elementary school teacher, was a former president of Neighbors of Watts, an organization that hosted stellar benefits to raise money for childcare centers.
Her husband is a well-known music director who founded Sussex Records in 1969. He signed Bill Withers and released some of his most famous songs, including “Ain’t No Sunshine” and “Lean on Me”.
Mr Avant was the subject of a 2019 Netflix documentary, The Black Godfather, which includes interviews with Mr Clinton, Barack Obama and Vice President Kamala Harris, then a presidential candidate.
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