South Carolina man will get life for 1976 chilly case killing

A South Carolina man has been sentenced to life in jail for a killing that went unsolved for greater than 4 a long time till a DNA match helped investigators crack the case.

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Charles Ugvine Coleman pleaded responsible to homicide Tuesday within the March 1976 dying of Elizabeth Ann Howell Wilson earlier than his trial began on the Fairfield County Courthouse, The Herald of Rock Hill reported.

The 66-year-old was charged in October 2020. He entered an Alford plea, which means he doesn’t admit guilt however accepts the punishment of a responsible plea as a result of it’s doubtless he can be convicted, in keeping with Sixth Circuit Solicitor Randy Newman.

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A sexual assault cost was dismissed as a part of the negotiated plea, in keeping with Coleman’s lawyer, Public Defender William Frick.

Coleman could possibly be eligible for parole in lower than 9 years as a result of the court docket needed to apply legal guidelines that have been in place on the time of the crime, the legal professionals stated. State legislation in 1976 required that an individual convicted of homicide would turn out to be eligible for parole after 10 years in jail. Coleman obtained credit score for 16 months in jail since his arrest, in keeping with Frick.

Wilson, a 45-year-old from Chester, was discovered sexually assaulted, strangled and crushed to dying after she left her shift at a textile plant, South Carolina Regulation Enforcement Division brokers and prosecutors stated.

Coleman was charged after DNA from a September 2020 conviction matched samples from the 1976 crime scene.