A man pleaded guilty Tuesday to shooting and killing a Shelby, NC, police officer in 2016.
Police said Irving Fenner Jr. shot Officer Tim Brackeen in the chest on Sept. 10, 2016, while the officer was serving a warrant on him.
Accused Killer of North Carolina K-9 Officer Pleads Guilty
The district attorney accepted the plea because he worried about the possibility that jurors could give Fenner second-degree murder. Under terms of the plea Fenner will spend the rest of his life in prison without the possibility of parole.
October 22, 2019
1 min to read
The officer died two days later and Fenner was found hiding out in Rhode Island soon after.
The district attorney told Channel 9 he accepted the plea because he worried about the possibility that jurors could give Fenner second-degree murder. Under terms of the plea Fenner will spend the rest of his life in prison without the possibility of parole. Originally, the prosecution had sought the death penalty .
Brackeen was a decorated K-9 officer and his death shook the Cleveland County community -- so much so that jury selection was moved to Catawba County because a judge ruled Fenner wouldn't get a fair trial in the high-profile case.
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