A teen was sentenced Thursday to 22 years in prison in the shooting death of 12-year-old Olivia Schultz in a suburban MIlwaukee alley in October, ending a legal drama that included a fight outside the courtroom before the judge imposed the sentence.
Benjamin Garrett, now 18, was convicted in March on charges of first-degree reckless homicide and first-degree reckless endangerment in the death of of Olivia, who was caught in the crossfire of an altercation between the teens.
Olivia was with her mother, Celeste Wilson, when two teens approached them in the alley. Wilson pleaded with the intruders not to do anything before they started to walk away, but one of the teens opened fire as they were about four houses away. Wilson was shot in the back and her daughter fatally wounded.
Garrett’s codefendant, 17-year-old Cornell Henard, is scheduled for trial in July. His plea agreement has already been offered but is still to be accepted.
During the sentencing hearing, Garrett expressed his remorse for his actions and apologized to Olivia’s family. His mother, Teisha McCoy, told the court that her son struggles with poor mental health and his father had left when he was a toddler. She added that she had kicked him out of their home for “disrespect”.
Shortly before Garrett was sentenced, there was an altercation in the hallway of the courthouse between his family and Olivia’s. About 40 people rushed out into the hall to join the fight before sheriff’s deputies arrived to break it up.
At the conclusion of the case, Garrett was sentenced to 22 years in prison, bringing closure to a tragedy that occurred in a suburban neighborhood eight months ago.