Before her sentence, a woman who confessed to murdering her partner spoke in front of a judge, appealing for mercy.
According to NBC station WTVJ, Atoya Holmes, a former Corrections Officer, shot and killed 52-year-old Verdell Goins in 2021 after their “toxic relationship.”
“I am to blame for Verdell Goins’ death.” That night, I pulled the trigger. “I was fighting for my life, but I am to blame for the death because I was in a toxic relationship,” Holmes testified in court.
Holmes was sentenced to 13 years in jail on Friday. After initially facing a second-degree murder charge, she was convicted guilty of a lesser manslaughter charge in October.
“I loved that man,” she admitted. “And I’m not simply talking about the love of a girl, a guy, a man, and a woman. “I loved him in a way that I can’t even explain.”
The duo were leaving a Miami Dolphins game on the night of the fatal shooting when they got into an altercation after Holmes became irritated that Goins was allegedly dating another woman. According to WTVJ, Holmes was married to a Miami-Dade Fire Rescue Assistant Chief at the time.
Holmes then brought out a gun and shot Goins twice. A witness allegedly saw Holmes punching Goins before the murder, according to WTVJ.
Goin’s family wanted the judge to sentence Holmes to the maximum penalty of 15 years in jail.
“You made the choice to pull out that firearm and you are a law enforcement officer and if you are pulling out that firearm, you’re pulling it out to use it, and you shot him twice,” the prosecutor said.
Holmes was sentenced to 13 years in state prison and will be required to undergo anger management classes following her release.
Holmes has a violent background. She also shot her son in 2017.