Man sentenced to 45 years for killing woman in car near DeLand Walgreens

An Ohio man was sentenced to 45 years in prison on Tuesday for killing his wife in DeLand two years ago.

Robert Fleming, 38, pleaded no contest on Tuesday to a charge of second-degree murder. Fleming had been indicted on a charge of first-degree murder which carried a mandatory life in prison sentence upon conviction.

Fleming shot and killed 35-year-old Latoisa Warren, whose body was found on May 17, 2022 in the front passenger seat of a car parked outside a Walgreens at 300 E. New York Ave. in DeLand. She had been shot three times.

Circuit Judge Elizabeth Blackburn adjudicated Fleming guilty and sentenced him to 45 years in prison.

Convicted man: Victim was 'nagging' me

No definite motive was determined for the killing but Fleming claimed during an interview that Warren was nagging him, according to the State Attorney's Office.

At one point as the case went through the legal process, Fleming was found incompetent to proceed and involuntarily committed for psychiatric treatment, according to court records in September 2022. He was found competent to proceed, according to a document filed in October 2023.

Both Fleming and Warren were from Cleveland, Ohio. Officials said at the time of the killing that they believed the two had been in the Central Florida area for a few months.

Two days before Warren's body was found, DeLand Police took Fleming into custody for psychiatric evaluation under the Baker Act.

In that incident, a police officer detained Fleming in the 100 block of North Amelia Avenue, about 900 feet away from the vehicle in the Walgreens' parking lot, according to a charging affidavit.

Fleming made “suicidal statements” and had blood on is right arm. Fleming also said he did not want to hurt anyone else and also said he did not want to hurt “that b****.”

Fleming  fell asleep on his way to the psychiatric evaluation. He was released from custody later that day, the affidavit stated.

Fleming was arrested on June 9, 2022 in Chattanooga, Tennessee and returned to Volusia County.

This article originally appeared on The Daytona Beach News-Journal: Man sentenced to 45 years for killing woman in car near DeLand Walgreens