Man sentenced to 25 years in Cape front-porch shooting death

Tavious Tipler, 20, was sentenced Friday to 25 years in the Missouri Department of Corrections for the March 31, 2016, shooting death of Airious Darling, according to a news release Saturday from Cape Girardeau County Prosecuting Attorney Chris Limbaugh.

Airious Darling, murder victim

The sentence was the maximum allowed under a plea agreement negotiated with defense counsel in January, Limbaugh said in the release.

In exchange for Tipler pleading guilty to second-degree murder, prosecutors agreed to recommend a maximum sentence of 25 years, Limbaugh said.

�As with many cases, this plea agreement was reached after a careful analysis of the evidence, including the level of cooperation from key witnesses, as well as an assessment of the State�s chances of obtaining a conviction should the case be presented before a jury,� Limbaugh said in the release.

At the sentencing hearing, Judge Michael Gardner heard arguments from prosecutors and the defendant, as well as a victim impact statement given by Angela Stewart, the mother of the victim, according to the release.

During Tipler�s testimony, said he was a human being and �not a killer,� Limbaugh said in the release. After hearing the arguments, Judge Gardner rebuked the defendant, saying �you are a killer� and sentenced him to the maximum punishment under the plea agreement, 25 years in prison, Limbaugh said.

In a signed statement to the court in January, Tipler admitted to shooting Darling, according to previous Southeast Missourian reporting.

According to the statement, Tipler said that in exchange for his guilty plea, prosecutors would recommend a 25-year prison sentence on the second-degree murder charge with sentencing for a previous probation violation to run concurrently. Under Missouri law, a second-degree murder conviction could carry a sentence of life in prison.

Tipler originally had been charged with first-degree murder in the shooting death of Darling, who was shot in the face.

Witness Deven Harris testified at Tipler�s preliminary hearing in June 2016 that Tipler told him �the wrong guy got shot.�

The victim was returning a 1-year-old child to the child�s father when he was fatally shot while standing on the porch at 612 Locust St., police said.

Darling was baby-sitting for Corey Gilbert, who lived at the Locust Street address, according to a probable-cause statement.

Gilbert told police Tipler was gunning for him, not Darling, according to the statement.

Gilbert said he was robbed in January 2016. According to the statement, Gilbert confronted Tipler two weeks before the shooting and told him he would identify him to police in connection with the robbery.

Tipler admitted to police his role in that crime, according to the probable-cause statement.

Assistant prosecuting attorney Angel Woodruff handled the prosecution and the case was investigated by the Bollinger and Cape Girardeau County Major Case Squad, Limbaugh said in the release.

Pertinent address:

612 Locust St., Cape Girardeau, Mo.