JACKSON, Mich. (AP) — A Michigan man convicted of murder after he was accused of breaking into a home and shooting a woman while streaming the attack on Facebook Live has been sentenced to life in prison without parole.
Twenty-year-old Anthony Gelia was given the mandatory punishment Wednesday after a jury in March convicted him of first-degree felony murder, home invasion and a felony firearms charge stemming from the November 2016 killing of 26-year-old Brittany Southwell.
Jurors at the trial watched a Facebook Live recording recovered from Gelia's cellphone showing him kicking in a door and opening fire.
Gelia's lawyer suggested at trial that involuntary manslaughter was a more appropriate charge, saying Gelia didn't know Southwell was behind a door when he fired. A bullet entered her side and punctured her lungs.