Former Lakeland commissioner pleads guilty to manslaughter in 2018 shooting
LAKELAND, Fla. - A former Lakeland city commissioner, who was charged with murder, has entered a guilty plea in the 2018 fatal shooting of a man who, he says, was trying to steal from his store.
Friday morning, Michael Dunn pled guilty to a lesser charge of manslaughter with a firearm. His sentencing will be held on May 23. Dunn faces up to 17.5 years in prison.
This comes just days before jury selection was scheduled to begin for Dunn’s second-degree murder trial. He is accused of shooting Cristobal Lopez to death for trying to shoplift a $15 hatchet from his army supply store back in 2018.
Surveillance video shows Lopez tried to leave the store, but Dunn grabbed him and shot him twice in the torso. Lopez died at the scene.
Surveillance video: Lakeland store shooting
Video released Monday by Lakeland police shows a store owner shoot a suspected shoplifter as the suspect tried to leave the store. It’s a key piece of evidence in the investigation into the confrontation, which ended with the death of the suspect. Note: FOX 13 decided to freeze the video the frame before the first shot is fired.
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Dunn’s lawyer initially claimed self-defense.
"This situation was commenced and started not by Michael Dunn, someone made a choice to shoplift," said James ‘Rusty’ Franklin, Dunn's attorney. "Mr. Dunn then was confronted with a situation where he sees an ax and an ax is coming toward him."
But according to arrest paperwork, Lopez did not make any verbal threats, nor did he appear to make any threatening movements toward Dunn.
Last year, a judge ruled a Stand Your Ground defense would not be allowed in this case.