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Man pleads guilty in May '14 homicide
By Joe Gorman
YOUNGSTOWN
Prosecutors are recommending 25 years in prison for a man who pleaded guilty to charges in a spring 2014 homicide.
Wesley Blackshear, 43, of Tod Lane, entered guilty pleas Tuesday in Mahoning County Common Pleas Court to a count of involuntary manslaughter and two counts of aggravated robbery. A charge of aggravated murder was amended to involuntary manslaughter in exchange for Blackshear’s plea.
Sentencing will be before Judge Maureen Sweeney once a pre-sentence investigation is completed.
Prosecutors agreed to drop a charge of being a felon in possession of a firearm in exchange for the plea.
Blackshear was involved in the death of Brendon Moorer, 34, of Robinson Road in Campbell, who was found dead in a car at a McGuffey Road gas station May 24, 2014.
Police said Moorer was in the passenger seat of a car that drove to Tod Lane on the North Side and picked up Blackshear for a drug sale.
The shooting occurred sometime after that, with Blackshear getting out of the car and running away, police said.
Moorer and Blackshear knew each other, police said.
The driver of the car panicked and drove to a McGuffey Road gas station more than 1.5 miles away, which is where police were called just before midnight. When they got there, Moorer was dead.
Assistant Prosecutor Rob Andrews told the judge the aggravated-robbery counts would merge into one count, and he is recommending sentences of 11 years on the aggravated robbery and 11 years for the involuntary manslaughter plus a three-year firearm specification for a total of 25 years.
Defense attorney Lynn Maro is arguing for a lesser sentence of at least 20 years, although she had proposed 18 years during plea negotiations. Andrews told the judge, however, he would not consider accepting a plea unless Maro would at least increase her offer to 20 years.
Judge Sweeney told Blackshear the reason for the pre-sentence investigation is so she can decide if he merits a sentence less than 25 years.