FULTON COUNTY, Ga. — A Fulton County judge sentenced a 39-year-old man to spend the rest of his life in prison, Thursday, for killing a young mother set to graduate from college, and police said it was with the help of the defendant's own home security system a jury was able to find him guilty.
On Thursday, Larry Reese, 39, was found guilty of murder, felony murder, aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, first degree criminal damage to property, possession of marijuana with intent to distribute and possession of a firearm during the commission of a felony.
According to the Fulton County District Attorney's Office, 21-year-old Claynesia Ringer was on her way to Reese's home Aug. 19, 2015 to buy marijuana from Reese. For some reason, officials said Reese mistook Ringer as an attempted robber and, as she pulled into his driveway, the defendant opened fire on the young woman's car. Several bullets hit Ringer's car, but one of those hit her in her chest, killing her instantly.
Reese ran away immediately after.
When officials searched the inside of Reese's home, they found marijuana in the basement and attic, digital scales and plastic baggies used to package the drugs. Investigators also found an "elaborate video surveillance system" that they said allowed Reese to keep tabs on anyone entering his home. But it was with the help of that camera system that police were able to find video of Reese firing the fatal shots.
Officials said Ringer was the mother of a 2-year-old girl at the time and had just enrolled in Atlanta Technical College with hopes of becoming a pharmacy technician.
“My baby (granddaughter), she has to grow up without her mother," Ringer's mother lamented after he daughter's death. "(Claynesia) didn’t deserve to die.”
After several months on the run, Reese eventually turned himself into Fulton County Police Feb. 5, 2016. Police said Reese was well known to as a drug dealer in the South Fulton County area, and had been arrested eight times previously, three of which stemmed from alleged illegal drug activity.
A judge sentenced Reese to life in prison, plus 10 years.
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