An 18-year-old Pennsylvania transgender person was sentenced Thursday for the murder of a 13-year-old, NBC Philadelphia reported.
Ash Cooper, 18, previously known as Joshua Cooper, received his sentence for killing 12-year-old Morgan Connors. He was 16 at the time. Cooper pleaded guilty to third-degree murder among other charges related to the Nov. 2022 incident, according to NBC Philadelphia.
The court handed down a 15 to 40-year prison term with an additional seven years of probation. Cooper must also comply with a series of probation rules and submit to psychological evaluations.
Police responded to reports of a possible murder at a local trailer park, the outlet reported. When the cops arrived they saw a teenager running from the back of a trailer.
When they got inside the trailer, they found Connors on the bathroom floor with a gunshot wound. There were signs that someone had tried to clean up where it happened.
Later, officers found Cooper close by in the trailer park and arrested him, NBC Philadelphia reported.
Cooper admitted to accidentally killing Connors and showed the bloody scene to a friend on an Instagram video chat.
Cooper then asked for help in hiding the crime and getting rid of Connors’ body, NBC Philadelphia stated. The investigation found that Cooper got the gun from his dad’s safe.
At the sentencing, Connors’ grandfather shared how much the family is hurting from losing her through a letter he wrote that was read by Chief Deputy District Attorney Kristin McElroy.
“The human heart is not built for such heartbreak,” the letter stated, according to NBC Philadelphia.
