Mainer awaits sentence for killing cellmate over cigarettes
May 31, 2021
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ROCKLAND, Maine (AP) A prisoner who killed his cellmate in a fight over cigarettes faces sentencing this week.
Zachary Titus, 36, pleaded guilty to manslaughter in December and is due to be sentenced on Friday. Under a plea agreement, the murder charge was reduced to manslaughter and the sentence capped at 12 years.
Witnesses told investigators that Titus put cellmate Dana Bartlett in a chokehold while the two fought over cigarettes on June 24, 2018, at the Bolduc Correctional Center.
An autopsy revealed Bartlett died from strangulation.
At the time of the killing, Titus was serving a two-year sentence for theft. He completed his sentence and was transferred to Knox County Jail, where he continues to be held without bail.