YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio (WKBN) — A woman who pleaded guilty to running over a man with a car and killing him was sentenced Monday to six to nine years in prison in Mahoning County Common Pleas Court.
Read next: Watch live as crews clean up demolition debris at Realty Building site Judge John Durkin handed down the sentence to Shanay Jacobs, 32, who pleaded guilty to a reduced charge of voluntary manslaughter for the Oct. 15 death of Nathaniel Watson, 30.
Watson w as found underneath a car at about 4:15 a.m. by police in the 200 block of South Schenley Avenue.
Jacobs was originally charged with voluntary manslaughter and felonious assault, but the charge was later upgraded to murder after police said they found video footage that they said showed Jacobs purposely ran Watson over.
The charge was reduced to voluntary manslaughter in exchange for Jacobs’ plea.
Prosecutors played security footage for the judge of when the car Jacobs was driving hit Watson. The video showed her walking away from the car after Watson was hit.
Jacobs later returned to the scene when police were there.
Watson’s mother, Sherry Anderson, told the judge she never thought she would be in the position of speaking about her son’s death.
“I have never received a gift like Nathan as my son,” she said. “I used to say, ‘Lord, what did I do to deserve this?’”
Her son was a “joy to be around” and was a “good character person.”
She said she is relying on her faith since her son’s death.
“He’s gone now from here, but he’s never gone from me,” she said. “He’s in my heart.”
She cried when she said she misses her son but added, “I want to see good come from this tragedy.” Jacobs was also crying when Anderson spoke.
“It was God who gave me a child I loved, and I still love him,” Anderson said.
Karlesha Tate, a cousin of Watson’s, recalled family events with him while growing up. She said he was as close to her as a brother.
“Our family is so close, but every holiday, something is missing. Every game night, something is missing.”
She said her cousin would have forgiven Jacobs if he had survived and she wanted to do what she thinks her cousin would have done.
“I don’t hate anybody,” she said.
Assistant Prosecutor Rob Andrews said Jacobs ran over Watson after Watson tried to break up an argument between Jacobs and her sister. He said he anticipated that defense attorney Walter Madison to say that Jacobs’ actions were clouded by alcohol, but Andrews said that police at the scene did not test Jacobs for alcohol because she did not appear to intoxicated.
Andrews said in a presentence investigation, Jacobs did not take responsibility for her actions that resulted in Watson’s death. He asked for a sentence of 11 to 16 and a half years.
Jacobs’ sister testified under questioning from Madison that a series of deaths of friends and family close together led Jacobs to drink and that family and friends tried to get her to stop. She testified that Jacobs was drunk when Watson was killed.
Jacobs testified under questioning from Madison that she did not mean to kill Watson and that she was drunk from drinking constantly before Watson was killed.
She said she want to three bars and an after-hours club before they ended up at her sister’s house.
She said she can’t remember running Watson over because of how much she drank and that she does not remember the fight she had with her sister.
Now, she said, “I’m done with alcohol for the rest of my life. I’m traumatized. It would be disrespectful to Nate.”
She said she’s been taking substance abuse and anger management classes while she has been in the county jail.
Reading from a statement, Jacobs apologized.
“I am deeply… sorry for this tragic accident,” she said. “I never meant for any of this to happen; I truly loved Nathaniel.”
“There is a deep cut to my heart because I still do not remember what happened,” Jacobs said.
Madison said he believed Jacobs should not serve more than five years in prison.
When Andrews questioned Jacobs, Andrews pointed out that two and a half hours after Watson was killed, she was able to tell detectives about the argument she had with her sister before Watson was killed.
Judge Durkin said it is clear that alcohol was involved in Watson’s death. He said Watson’s death was a tragedy.
“Nate did not deserve to die,” Judge Durkin said.
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