A Florida man who shot and killed an unarmed father of three over parking dispute was sentenced this Thursday to 20 years in prison, the Associated Press reports.
Michael Drejka was found guilty of manslaughter by a jury in August for a 2018 incident where he confronted the girlfriend of Markeis McGlockton for parking in the handicap space at a Clearwater convenience store.
McGlockton, who is black, was inside the store with his 5-year-old son when a customer went into the store and told him about what was going on outside. Security video shows McGlockton going out to the parking lot and shoving Drejka to the ground. Seconds later, Drejka, who is white, pulled out a handgun and shot the 28-year-old McGlockton as he was backing away.
McGlockton ran back into the store, where he collapsed and died in front of his son.
During Drejka’s sentencing, Circuit Judge Joseph Bulone called him a “wanna-be” cop and a self-appointed “handicapped parking space monitor.”
WATCH: A Pinellas judge sentences Michael Drejka to 20 years in prison in the shooting death of Markeis McGlockton. https://t.co/wfB6BkCVrz pic.twitter.com/KdDm1JH59C
— Spectrum Bay News 9 (@BN9) October 10, 2019
“He just seems to come out of nowhere, kind of like a superhero, to see that he enforces the handicapped parking spot,” Bulone said.
McGlockton’s girlfriend, Britany Jacobs, spoke before the sentencing, saying that there are “no words to fully describe what [McGlockton’s] loss has done to our family.”
“Our youngest two children will never have memories of their daddy,” she said.
Featured image via Pinellas County Sheriff’s Office/screen grab
