A 28-year-old Hot Springs man was sentenced to 80 years in prison for his role in a shooting that killed a woman and injured two other people, including a 20-month-old girl.
Benjamin Mickey Pitts was sentenced Tuesday in Garland County Circuit Court after being found guilty last week of charges of second-degree murder, possessing a firearm as a felon, aggravated residential burglary and two counts of second-degree battery, the Hot Springs Sentinel-Record reported.
Pitts had been paroled about a week before the April 30, 2014, shooting at 200 Springwood Road, the newspaper reported.
Prosecutors said Steven Swanigan, 33, was holding two handguns when he "burst open" the front door of the apartment and started shooting. Pitts followed him in and was armed with a gun, though he didn't open fire.
Mayela Mata, 26, was fatally shot while her 20-month-old daughter and another man in the residence were each also hit, authorities said. The girl was airlifted to Arkansas Children's Hospital for treatment while the man was treated and released the same day at a local hospital, the newspaper reported.
Swanigan was convicted earlier this month of first-degree murder and two counts of first-degree battery, for which he was sentenced to 60 years in prison with no possibility of parole for the first 40 years. Pitts will be eligible for parole in about 20 years, officials said.
