Caliah Burns pled guilty to Voluntary Manslaughter and Possession of a Firearm During the Commission of a Felony at the Decatur County Courthouse on Aug. 15. 

Under Georgia Law, Voluntary carries a sentence of up to 20 years.  Possession of a Firearm During the Commission of a Felony carries a maximum sentence of five years, and the offender is required to serve his sentence consecutively to any other charges. 

Burns was indicted in the killing of Recardo James in Bainbridge on March 6, 2015.  Burns shot and killed James during an altercation with several other individuals.

Glenda James, mother of the victim, testified in allocution. She asked the Court to sentence the defendant to the maximum sentence, which would be 25 years.  The Court, after hearing from James, did exactly that.

The Case was prosecuted by District Attorney Joe Mulholland.  Mulholland stated “This was a senseless and tragic incident that left two young children without a father.  I would like to thank Investigator Robert Humphrey for his hard work and diligence to bringing this killer to justice. I also thank Superior Court Judge Heather Lanier for seeing how important it was for Burns to receive the maximum sentence so that the James family can have some semblance of closure in this matter.  Our office will continue to aggressively prosecute those that commit violent crimes in our circuit in an effort to keep our community safe.”