Lattus Signs Plea Deal in Hickman Mayor's Death
By WestKyStar Staff
HICKMAN, KY - Tommy Lattus, the man who confessed to killing Hickman Mayor Charles Murphy in January of 2012, has taken a plea deal to avoid a trial.
The plea was entered Friday in Fulton Circuit Court. The agreement was actually signed Monday before a hearing, but Commonwealth Attorney Dennis Null requested the 4-day wait to make sure Lattus didn't change his mind. Lattus pled guilty but mentally ill to the murder charge.
The agreement recommends a sentence of 37-1/2 year, according to the Paducah Sun. Official sentencing is set for March 28.
In August, the original murder charges against him were dismissed by a judge after he was ruled incompetent and he was sent to the psychiatric facility. He was re-indicted Nov. 8 by a Grand Jury after being found competent to stand trial.
Officers arrested Lattus after he walked into the police station Jan. 28, 2012 and told them that he shot Murphy with a shotgun.