TALLMADGE TOWNSHIP, Mich. — The man who pleaded guilty to his role in a shooting that took the life of a teen-aged party-goer will spend at least the next five years in prison.
On Monday an Ottawa County judge sentenced Westen Meulenberg to a minimum of five years and ten months. The 20-year-old was charged in connection to the shooting death that happened on May 9.
That night, Meulenberg was one of several people at a house party off 2nd Street when he found a gun in an upstairs bedroom. Meulenberg fired several rounds into the floor, many of which when through the boards. One hit 19-year-old Connor Lotterman in the head.
Lotterman died from his injuries a few days later.
Investigators do not believe Meulenberg had any intention of harming Lotterman. Police at the time said alcohol likely played a role in the shooting. The medical examiner ruled the death as accidental.
Meulenberg pleaded guilty to one count of Discharging a Firearm in a Building Causing Death as part of a deal with the prosecutor. In return, no additional charges connected to the shooting will be filed.
His maximum sentence was set at 25 years, far short of the charge's maximum of life in prison.
