Just as jury selection in the murder trial of Anthony Oliver ended in Caddo District Court Tuesday, October 24, 2017, the defendant offered to plead guilty to manslaughter.

Oliver, 25, faced a mandatory life sentence if convicted of the original second-degree murder charge for the February 2015 slaying of Aiden King, a seven-month-old child who had been left in Oliver’s care by his mother.

The child was taken unconscious from his mother’s apartment to University Health, where he later died. Autopsy revealed the child suffered a broken clavicle and a subdural hematoma.

“After consultation with and with the approval of the mother of the deceased baby and the paternal grandparents of deceased baby, the state accepted that offer,” said Caddo Parish Assistant District Attorney Jason Waltman, who with fellow ADA Treneisha Hill prosecuted Oliver. Kenneth Beck was Oliver’s defense attorney.

After Oliver admitted his guilt during, Caddo District Judge Katherine Dorroh sentenced Oliver to 12 years at hard labor without benefit of probation, parole or suspension of sentence.