A North Charleston man whose first murder trial ended in a mistrial when he unexpectedly argued self-defense was found guilty Thursday and sentenced to 30 years in prison.
Leandra Lamont Bright, 33, went to the Liberty Park home of a man with whom he'd been arguing and shot the victim several times at close range in March 2016. Arthur Myers was hit in the head and torso, and crashed his car as he tried to flee.
Bright originally told North Charleston police that a third person had shot Myers, but witnesses and evidence proved otherwise, police said.
When Bright took the stand in June 2018, he claimed Myers was upset that Bright had been selling drugs to Myers' clients, and that he shot the victim in self-defense.
His attorney motioned for a mistrial, which the solicitor's office said was due to "issues that developed between the defendant and his attorney during the trial."
Circuit Judge Markley Dennis sentenced Bright to 30 years for the murder, along with a concurrent five-year sentence for possession of a weapon during the commission of a violent crime.