Eric Coulter convicted of manslaughter in fatal shooting of girlfriend
Eric Coulter
Photographer: Courtesy: Chandler Police Department
Copyright 2011 Scripps Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Posted: 03/18/2013
-
By: Associated Press
CHANDLER, AZ - A Chandler man has been convicted of manslaughter in the fatal shooting of his girlfriend in 2011.
Maricopa County prosecutors say a jury found 20-year-old Eric Coulter guilty Monday after less than three days of deliberations.
They say Coulter faces a prison term of between seven to 21 years when he's sentenced on April 26.
Coulter was arrested on suspicion of fatally shooting 18-year-old Monique Cota in his bedroom on Oct. 15, 2011.
Investigators say Coulter had assaulted Cota in an earlier incident.
Coulter claimed the shooting was an accident that occurred as he was inspecting an AR-15 rifle.
Police say Coulter's sister then hid guns that were in the house and drove him to the motel room in Mesa.
Coulter was later arrested at the hotel.
Copyright 2013 Scripps Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
PRINT- Your Region News
Click on the region names in the map below to see news from that region.
RIGHT NOW: Top Stories
-
FORECAST: Memorial Day cool down
We have to get through another very warm day but soon temperatures will get cooler and it's just in time for the Memorial Day holiday.
-
MCSO: Body pulled from Lake Pleasant
Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office spokesman Chris Hegstrom identified the victim as 49-year-old Pedro Aguirre Castillo of Peoria.
-
Characters come out at PHX Comicon
All weekend long characters from Superman to Ironman are converging on the Phoenix Convention Center for Phoenix Comicon.
-
PD looks for driver who hit bicyclist
A man riding a bicycle has died after he was struck by a vehicle in Phoenix Friday night.
-
Community honors Officer Daryl Raetz
Phoenix police officers, family and friends gathered Saturday morning to remember an officer who was killed in the line of duty last weekend.
-
Gilbert teen overcomes pain to graduate
It’s graduation time and one student at Perry High School in Gilbert has had to overcome a lot more than most to graduate with honors.
