CLEVELAND (AP) - A Cleveland man has pleaded guilty in the fatal shooting of a Salvation Army worker who was going out to collect money at one of the charity’s kettles.
William Jones was charged in the Dec. 2 slaying of Jared Fier-Plesec. Investigators say Fier-Plesec was wearing his Salvation Army uniform and had stopped to discuss the Bible with someone when Jones shot him.
Cleveland.com reports that the 27-year-old pleaded guilty Tuesday to charges including aggravated murder, avoiding the possibility of the death penalty. Jones was also charged with subsequent carjackings, assaults and the shooting of a woman in the leg.
Sentencing is set for May 21. A cousin of Fier-Plesec says the deeply religious 21-year-old likely would have objected to giving Jones the death penalty.
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Information from: cleveland.com, http://www.cleveland.com
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