Guilty plea into 2021 Johnson City shooting results in life sentence

The suspect in a 2021 shooting at a Johnson City apartment complex has entered a plea of guilty.

A report from District Attorney Steve Finney said Darius William Lavonta Adler, 21, received a life sentence for the first-degree murder of Daniel King.

Prosecutors said Adler met King at Plymouth Ridge Apartments responding to an online ad for a gun for sale. Adler told officers that he went to the meeting to rob King.

The victim was shot 17 times by Adler with a .9mm including several shots at point-blank range while he stood over King. Adler, who also stole King’s two AR-15 rifles, was 17 at the time of the shooting. He was transfered from juvenile court three months after the crime to be tried as an adult.

(IMAGE: Google Maps / George Jaynes Justice Center)