On Friday morning, 25-year-old Antwane Dupree Lee, faced a Fresno County judge who accepted a plea deal.
In exchange for pleading guilty, Lee was sentenced to four years for voluntary manslaughter, far less than the 15 years to life he could have faced under his initial second-degree murder charge.
"It's something Mr.Lee didn't feel he should necessarily do but it's better than 15 years to life. He did not want to roll the dice on that," said Defense Attorney Greg Gross.
Prosecutor Kendall Reynolds says they made the offer after weighing the evidence.
"This case didn't go to trial for a variety of reasons but that is part of the process...part of the process is to determine the strengths and weakness of your evidence and negotiations with defense counsel and if we can come to an agreement that encompasses accountability, we will certainly take it and that is what we did in this case," said Prosecutor Kendall Reynolds.
Lee was accused of selling deadly pills to 34-year-old Vernisha Latriece Green in 2024.
She was found dead on April 17, the day after the sale. This is the second case in Fresno County, holding a seller criminally responsible for a deadly overdose.
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" This one was a little bit different, there are not the evidentiary issues that were the same in Cassidy's case," said Gross.
Gross also represented Cassidy Gonzalez, the first to face a charge in 2025. She was convicted of second-degree murder.
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Reynolds prosecuted that case as well, and says dealers selling deadly pills will continue to be held accountable in Fresno County.
" If we determine who you are, what you are doing, we are going to hold you accountable. The state laws here, sometimes it's homicide and sometimes it's not. In this case, it resulted in a homicide conviction," said Reynolds.
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