DETROIT (WWJ) -- After pleading guilty to a reduced charge of second-degree murder in February, a former Michigan State University basketball player was sentenced to up to 40 years in prison for the shooting death of his mother's cousin in May 2021.
Last month, 31-year-old Keith Appling of Detroit pleaded guilty to second-degree murder and felony firearm charges for the fatal shooting of Clyde Edmonds, also of Detroit. Edmonds was a member of Appling's mother's extended family.
Detroit police responded to reports of a shooting on the evening of May 22, 2021, and found 66-year-old Edmonds lying on the front lawn of the home, suffering from multiple gunshot wounds. Paramedics transported the victim to an area hospital where he was pronounced dead.
Authorities believe Appling and Edmonds were involved in an argument about the handgun when the defendant fired several shots, then fled.
At the time Appling was charged in June 2022, he faced one count of first-degree murder, one count of felon in possession of a firearm and two counts of felony firearm.
During a hearing in February, Appling pleaded guilty to the reduced charge of second-degree murder and felony firearm as part of a sentencing agreement. The felon in possession charge was then dismissed.
On Friday, Judge Michael Hathaway sentenced Appling to 18 to 40 years in the Michigan Department of Corrections. He also received a two-year sentence for felony firearm, to be served concurrently.
"What an extremely sad turn of events for a man that once had a promising future," said Wayne County Prosecutor Kym Worthy in a news release, calling the killing a "senseless crime."
The Detroit Pershing graduate played basketball at MSU from 2010 to 2014 and was the team's leading scorer heading into his junior year. After graduation, he signed two short-lived contracts with the Orlando Magic.
Appling served 18 months probation for drug charges in 2020. Before that, he was sentenced to a year in prison for carrying concealed weapons and resisting arrest.
Appling's girlfriend, Natalie Brooks Bannister, 30, of Jackson, was accused of driving Appling away following the shooting. She was charged with accessory after the fact and lying to police, but eventually pleaded down to just the lying charge. She was sentenced to a year in prison and six months probation in July 2022.
