Man gets 25 to 50 years in murders outside bar

Man gets 25 to 50 years in murders outside bar

WASHINGTON, Pa. (AP) — A man has been sentenced to 25 to 50 years in prison in the shooting deaths of two men outside a western Pennsylvania bar almost five years ago.

Thirty-one-year-old Phillip Whitlock of Washington pleaded guilty in 2012 in Washington County to two counts of third-degree murder, aggravated assault and criminal conspiracy.

He was charged in the February 2009 slayings of 23-year-old Troy Saunders Jr. and 24-year-old Marquis Taylor outside the Cabaret West bar in Washington.

Whitlock testified last month against 25-year-old co-defendant Gregory Avery Jr., who was acquitted.

Defense attorney Noah Geary sought a light sentence, citing his cooperation, but Judge Katherine Emery called the killings “terribly senseless” and imposed the term recommended by prosecutors.

Whitlock apologized Tuesday to relatives of the victims, saying “It didn’t have to happen.”