Atlanta-area spa shooter to serve 4 life sentences in Cherokee County slayings
https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/atlanta-area-spa-shootings-suspect-pleads-guilty-cherokee-county-charges-n1275139
The man accused of killing eight people at Atlanta-area spas in March will serve four life sentences after pleading guilty to four of the murders.
Cherokee County Superior Court Chief Judge Ellen McElyea handed down the sentence for Robert Aaron Long on Tuesday, more than four months after the March 16 rampage inside Youngs Asian Massage. Delaina Ashley Yaun, 33, Paul Andre Michels, 54, Xiaojie Tan, 49, and Daoyou Feng, 44, were killed. That same day, Long is accused of fatally shooting four others at two spas in Atlanta.
The guilty plea and the sentence were part of a deal announced during the proceeding.
Long was indicted on 23 charges related to the Cherokee County shootings including malicious murder, felony murder and aggravated assault. Although the state said several of the charges will either merge or be vacated by the law, he pleaded guilty to every charge as part of an agreement.
Prosecutors recommended four life sentences without the possibility of parole, plus 35 years. McElyea agreed with the recommendation.
Cherokee County District Attorney Shannon Wallace said that the surviving victims and the families of those killed did not want to pursue the death penalty.