A local man who claims he accidentally shot a woman to death with a sawed-off shotgun Saturday night was charged with second-degree murder Monday in addition to earlier charges filed Saturday.
Levar Laron Strickland, 41, of 315 N. Patterson St., was taken into custody at his residence around 7:30 p.m. Saturday and initially charged with criminal use of a prohibited weapon and possession of a defaced firearm, each punishable by up to six years in prison, in connection with the shooting of Stephanie Malicoat, 40, inside his residence.
On Monday, additional felony charges of second-degree murder, punishable by up to 30 years in prison, and three counts of endangering the welfare of a minor, punishable by up to six years, were filed against Strickland.
Strickland remained in custody Monday in lieu of $600,000 bond and is reportedly set to appear July 8 in Garland County District Court, although he will likely be arraigned before then.
According to the probable cause affidavit on the initial charges, Hot Springs police responded to the North Patterson Street residence at around 7:20 p.m. Saturday regarding a shooting that had just occurred and found a woman with a gunshot wound.
Strickland was at the scene and reportedly stated he accidentally shot the woman with a sawed-off shotgun. A search warrant was obtained for the residence and a 12-gauge shotgun was found which had the barrel cut down to less than 12 inches, making it a prohibited weapon. It was also noted the serial numbers had been filed off.
In a news release on Monday, police identified the victim as Malicoat and noted she was found deceased in the house. At the time of the shooting, police had said it was believed to involve a domestic dispute and that the victim was the girlfriend or wife of the alleged shooter.
There were also reportedly children in the house at the time of the shooting.
According to court documents, Malicoat had filed a petition for an order of protection against Strickland on March 19, 2012, noting they lived together and had a child together. Malicoat alleged she came home three days earlier and found her son, who was 2 years old at the time, "unable to walk without falling down" and took him to the hospital where it was determined he was intoxicated, with a blood-alcohol content of .173 percent, over twice the legal limit.
She noted he was under the care of Strickland at the time and she noted Strickland was "very intoxicated." The petition was later denied on March 29, 2012, after Garland County Circuit Court Judge Lynn Williams ruled that "giving a minor alcohol does not appear to fit the definition of domestic abuse."
Local on 06/25/2019