MAYS LANDING, N.J. – A man accused of murder in the fatal shooting of a teenage girl who refused his requests for a kiss pleaded guilty Wednesday to the lesser charge of aggravated manslaughter.
Alfred R. Bishop (search), 21, admitted playing with a gun and cocking the weapon's hammer while pointing it at Elisa Hernandez (search), knowing she would probably be killed if it went off.
Police said Hernandez, a high school sophomore who knew Bishop only in passing from her neighborhood, encountered him March 29 while visiting friends in an apartment.
After some conversation, Bishop tried to get Hernandez to kiss him. She said no.
Bishop then pulled the gun, put it to her head and again demanded a kiss. According to witnesses, she said no and pushed the weapon away twice before Bishop shot her through the eye.
Prosecutor Jeffrey Blitz said the plea to a lesser charge eliminated the need for a trial in which Bishop's mental health would likely have been an issue. He said the girl's family agreed to the plea.
Bishop, a diagnosed schizophrenic (search), also pleaded guilty to making terroristic threats and illegal possession of a weapon in two other incidents earlier the same day.
Sentencing was scheduled Aug. 11. Bishop faces up to 24 years in prison for the shooting and will have to serve at least 20 years before being considered for parole.
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