A Decatur man was sentenced to life in prison Tuesday for killing a woman who rented a home from his father, the DeKalb County district attorney said.
Late last week, a jury convicted Danny John Marillo Hunter, 34, guilty of felony murder, involuntary manslaughter, two counts of aggravated assault and two counts of possession of a firearm during the commission of a felony. On Sept. 22, 2021, Hunter fired shots at both Kateasha Cardell, 40, and her fiancé Karlo Dupree, 48. Cardell died from her injuries.
On that day, Dupree and Cardell went to their landlord’s house on Dove Valley Road to speak to him about charges they had noticed on a bank account, but didn’t believe they owed.
“While they were speaking to defendant Hunter and his father in front of the home, defendant Hunter went inside the house and grabbed a revolver,” the DA’s office said. “He then came back outside and shot the victim.”
Dupree got into his car to leave and Hunter also fired a shot at him, investigators said. Dupree drove to the DeKalb jail to get help from law enforcement.
Officers were called shortly after 4 p.m. that day to the home in unincorporated Decatur. Cardell was in the middle of the road, in front of the home, and had been shot in the back of her neck, according to investigators.
Hunter was arrested at the home. He told officers the couple had made threats against him and his father, investigators said.
Dupree told investigators he and Cardell had been in an ongoing dispute with their landlord, who had shut off their utilities in an effort to make them leave the property. Dupree said he was trying to protect his father, but neither Cardell nor Dupree were armed, investigators said.
Cardell is survived by two children, according to a GoFundMe page created by her niece.
“She left behind her two children that she loved so dearly and will now have to continue on with life without the one they love the most,” the fundraising page states.
Cardell’s funeral and burial were held in Ohio, where additional family members live.
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