A man accused of second-degree murder in 2010 will have his fate determined by a Caddo Parish District judge in a bench trial set to begin today, January 29, 2018.
Javonte D. Sanders, 26, of Shreveport, is charged with the November 2010 slaying of Sherri Ann Payton, 47, whose body was found in the bathroom of her Lynbrook Boulevard home in the Hyde Park neighborhood. Her Pontiac Grand Am was missing but later was found at a Shreveport apartment complex.
The case remained cold for several years, but three years after the slaying, authorities received a tip that led to evidence that placed Sanders at the scene.
Sanders, represented by Mary Harried, will plead his case before Caddo District Judge Brady D. O’Callaghan. If convicted as charged, Sanders faces a mandatory sentence of life in prison without the possibility of parole, probation or reduction of sentence.
Prosecuting for the state are Assistant District Attorneys Mekisha Smith Creal and Bill Edwards.