Shaw Avoids Death, Sentenced to 18 Years

Dennis Shaw, who had faced the death penalty for a 2006 homicide, pleaded guilty this week to second-degree murder.  Rhonda Renee Barnes was beaten, burned with acid, and left on the floor of her Clayton home.  Prosecutors took death off the table when they were unable to prove that the murder was premeditated.  Shaw, who had no prior history of violence, was sentenced to 18 years in prison.