Former death row inmate takes plea in barbershop killings

Published February 10, 2017

A former death row inmate facing retrial on charges of killing a man and a young boy at a Delaware barbershop in 2001 has accepted a plea offer.

Chauncy Starling pleaded no contest Friday to one count of second-degree murder.

Starling was originally convicted and sentenced to death for the shootings in Wilmington of 5-year-old Damon Gist Jr. and 28-year-old Darnell Evans. He was granted a new trial in 2015 because of his attorney's mistakes and the prosecutors' failure to disclose information about their key witness.

According to court records, Starling was searching for Evans the day of the shooting. After spotting him, police said, Starling entered the barbershop and shot Evans several times. Authorities said that as Evans tried to run, a bullet struck the child in the head.

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