Chris Cole

FLINT, MI -- A Flint man will spend more than a decade behind bars after he pleaded guilty to killing a Mt. Morris Township man whose body was discovered underneath a mobile home.

Steven Jaquaviar Willingham was sentenced Monday, May 4, to serve 9.5 to 20 years in prison after he pleaded guilty to second-degree murder in the March 2013 shooting death of 26-year-old Christopher Cole.

Genesee Circuit Judge Judith Fullerton also ordered Willingham to serve a consecutive two-year prison term for felony firearms.

Willingham, who was 17 at the time, was charged with open murder and seven other crimes, including armed robbery and carjacking, stemming from Cole's death. Cole's body was found March 27, 2013, under a vacant trailer at the Elms Mobile Home Park, 2801 S. Dort Highway, in Flint.

Cole was reported missing from his Mt. Morris Township home on March 24, 2013, and last seen by his family a day earlier. His girlfriend and mother of his three children, Taquisha Williams, said he received a call from someone who needed a ride on the morning of March 23. She never heard or saw from him again.

Prosecutors alleged Willingham killed Cole, hid his body and took his car. But, Cole's attorney, Frank J. Manley, argued the shooting was an accident.

Special Assistant Attorney General Michael Thomas, who handled Willingham's prosecution, called it an "all-or-nothing case," adding that jurors could return a first-degree murder verdict if they agreed with the prosecutor's version of events.

However, Willingham could have avoided extended prison time if jurors believed the shooting was an accident.

Manley said his client had no juvenile, misdemeanor or felony record prior to the shooting, and he would have been forced to gamble with his client's life if it would have headed to trial.

"There's no evidence this is anything other than an accident," Manley said.

The plea agreement came with a sentencing recommendation, which would have allowed Willingham to withdraw his plea and head to trial if Fullerton's sentence exceeded the recommendation. However, Fullerton chose to impose a sentence matching the agreement.

Manley claimed Willingham was handling a sawed-off shotgun, which he said was provided to his client by Cole, when it accidentally discharged and killed Cole.

Willingham's guilty plea rested upon a provision in the state's second-degree murder statute that punishes people for negligent behavior that creates a high likelihood of death.

Manley said his client panicked after the killing.

Willingham had stayed with Cole prior to his death, and had even watched his young children. Manley described a close relationship between the two.

"These guys did everything together," Manley said.

Willingham briefly addressed the court before being sentenced.

"I really did love Christopher Cole a whole lot," Willingham said.