A man accused of shooting into the wrong apartment and killing a 9-year-old girl in East Dallas took a plea deal Monday.
Tyrese Simmons agreed to 5 years in state prison for manslaughter and two years for jumping bail. This comes after a mistrial was declared when two witnesses changed their story as the case went to trial.
Last Wednesday, he pled not guilty before Judge Hector Garza in the 195th District Court.
Tyrese Simmons Trial
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The trial was originally supposed to start last summer but police said Simmons went on the run, just days before he was scheduled to stand before the judge. He was eventually caught in Oklahoma and put in jail last August.
Simmons is accused of firing five bullets into an apartment on Munger Avenue in August 2019 and killing 9-year-old Brandoniya Bennett, who was just days away from starting 4th grade.
Dallas police said Simmons was in a fight with another rapper and mistook the apartment for his rival's.
Simmons surrendered to police the day after the shooting but was released on bond months later. Then last summer, just ahead of his trial, police said he cut off his ankle monitor and fled.
In opening arguments Wednesday morning, defense attorneys told jurors the evidence was lacking.
“We know what the facts show in this case. The evidence will show there is not an eye witness in this shooting, no gun, no fingerprints, and no DNA,” said defense attorney Josh Healy.
His defense also claimed there was a lack of detective work in this case and that those detectives – who will be called to testify in this trial – didn't interview the two main culprits in the supposed fight.
