A Florida man who shot his girlfriend to death after a heated argument will spend the rest of his life in prison.
Escambia County Circuit Judge Coleman Robinson sentenced Frank Wilson to 40 years in prison for the shooting death of Sonja Burch, 64. Wilson was found second guilty and convicted by a jury of second-degree murder.
On March 22, 2022, officers responded to the home of the couple on Worley Road off Mystic Springs Road after reports of a fatal shooting. Upon their arrival, the defendant was found standing outside with some relatives and Burch’s body on the kitchen floor, reported Pensacola News Journal.
Later, Wilson admitted to the killing and blamed the incident on his high blood pressure medication and anger. According to prosecutors, Burch had asked Wilson for some money to go to the casino but told her he didn’t have any. Then, the victim told the defendant she had a new lover, which led to a heated argument. During the altercation, Wilson told investigators that Burch had launched at him with a butter knife. Hence, as the argument continued to escalate, he lost it before retrieving a .410 shotgun and fatally shot the victim in the living room. Then, Wilson placed the murder weapon back on his gun shelf and called a relative, who in turn contacted 911 to report the incident.
Despite Wilson’s self-defense claim, authorities never found any butterknife anywhere close to Burch’s body.
“Due to not locating the alleged butter knife, it is reasonable to believe that (the victim) was unarmed at the time she was shot by Frank Wilson,” stated investigators in the arrest report, according to NorthEscambia.com.
The jury agreed!
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