Amarillo man pleads guilty to 2022 shooting death of juvenile

AMARILLO, Texas (KFDA) - A man will spend 10 years in prison for fatally shooting a juvenile in June 2022.

Police were called out to a home in the area of Southwest 7th Avenue and South Jefferson Street on reports of a shooting.

When they arrived at the scene, officers found a juvenile male inside a vehicle, dead from a gunshot wound.

They said they arrested a 16-year-old boy on charges of manslaughter and tampering with evidence. The juvenile was booked into the Youth Center of the High Plains.

The charge was transferred to adult court in September 2022, according to court records. At that point, the suspect was identified as Aberiel Rashaud Westmoreland, Jr.

Westmoreland was released on $70,000 bond in October 2022.

A Potter County grand jury indicted him for the death of the juvenile in December 2022.

In March, a now 20-year-old Westmoreland and his attorney appeared before District Judge Tim Pirtle where he admitted guilt to the manslaughter charge. A hearing for his sentencing was set for March 23.

At the sentencing hearing, the judge sentenced Westmoreland to 10 years in prison and dismissed the charge of tampering with evidence.

Westmoreland is currently in custody at Potter County Detention Center pending his transfer to the penal system.