A woman who shot a man to death after they drank together in a Pittsburgh apartment will spend at least 5 1/2 years in state prison.
Toddia Smiley, 28, of Pittsburgh, pled guilty in December to voluntary manslaughter after shooting Damien Jackson, 29, of Homestead, on September 1, 2022.
Allegheny County Common Pleas Judge Beth A. Lazzara sentenced her on Thursday to 5 1/2 to 11 years in prison, with nine years probation.
Smiley pleaded guilty to tampering with evidence.
Smiley allegedly killed Jackson inside an apartment in the 2100 block of Park Hill Drive in Pittsburgh’s East Hills neighborhood.
Smiley said officers she had been drinking with Jackson and his sister at the apartment that night, but she fled after Jackson argued with her.
According to authorities, she claimed he threatened to “smoke” her.
Smiley said: Jackson spit on her and hit her in the face as she fled.
According to the police complaint, Jackson punched her again when Smiley returned to the flat to retrieve her cell phone.
Smiley told police that she “thought she saw him reaching for something with his left hand,” so she took out her pistol and shot him.
Jackson’s sister, on the other side, claimed that her brother did not have a firearm and that Smiley returned to the apartment with the gun, opened the door, and fired.