Second man charged in death of Lexington 2-year-old pleads guilty
A second man pleaded guilty to lesser charges in connection to the 2016 death of a two-year-old girl in Lexington.
Marquis Thurman, 23, pleaded guilty in Fayette Circuit Court on Friday, to first degree manslaughter and tampering with physical evidence. Thurman was previously charged in 2017 with murder, first-degree assault, wanton endangerment and first-degree robbery in connection to the death of Nova Gallman, a two-year-old, who died from a gun shot wound after a fight over a marijuana deal.
Thurman’s plea deal comes a day after Adrian Dunn, another 23-year-old originally charged with murder in connection to Nova’s death, pleaded guilty to lesser charges. Dunn was set to testify against Thurman in Thurman’s upcoming trial.
According to a police press release, on the night of Dec. 5, 2016, Nova was sitting with her mother, Sierra Green, and her mother’s boyfriend in their house on Kenton Street when Dunn and Thurman knocked on the door of the house.
They later told police investigators they were at the house to buy marijuana, WKYT reported. The mother’s boyfriend answered the door, and according to witnesses, Dunn and Thurman demanded money. A fight broke out and shots were fired. The boyfriend was shot five times and Nova was shot in the head. Nova later died from her injuries.
Dunn and Thurman fled the scene, but were later arrested after arriving at a hospital to be treated for wounds, police said.
“We feel very sorry for the family of Nova Gallman, on behalf of everybody, including Marquis, we’re very sorry about her death,” said Joanne Lynch, one of Thurman’s attorneys.
Thurman’s guilty plea comes with recommended prison sentences of 18 years for manslaughter and five years for tampering with physical evidence, said Kathy Phillips, the assistant commonwealth attorney present in court. Phillips also recommended that Thurman be required to pay restitution equaling Nova’s funeral expenses—about $1,800. Phillips said she could not comment on the case until after final sentencing. The sentencing hearing is scheduled for March 5.
“Marquis will spend decades in prison, most likely,” Lynch said after Thurman pleaded guilty. “He will be punished for his role in this. But it will not be an extreme punishment that goes beyond what actually happened. Again, it doesn’t take away the tragedy, but it is a reasonable settlement in the case. It won’t make anyone happy, nor should it.”
Lynch said she and Thurman’s other attorneys, had had several discussions about what evidence investigators had gathered leading up to the plea deal, and “there was evidence that makes this a very fair plea agreement.”
“For example, there is no evidence, absolutely none, that anyone went into the house that night with any intent to hurt anyone, much less kill anyone,” Lynch said. “There was evidence that the house was a place where drugs were dealt.”
Lynch said that cocaine and scales were found in the house and “the government took into consideration all of that and more and made their decision and I think it was the right decision.”
This story was originally published January 17, 2020 at 4:50 PM.