GREELEY, Colo. — An Arkansas man was sentenced to 35 years in the Colorado Department of Corrections for the shooting death of a woman in August 2017, the Weld County District Attorney's Office announced Thursday.
David Houston-Harvey admitted that he shot Laramie Cline, 23, in the head while the two were traveling southbound on Interstate 25 through Weld County, according to prosecutors.
Houston-Harvey and Cline were headed from Wyoming to Denver in Cline's vehicle when Houston-Harvey shot Cline and then put her body in his suitcase between Aug. 10, 2017, and Aug. 11, 2017, the DA's office said.
>Watch above to see a video from May 2019 when Houston-Harvey was charged in Cline's murder
He initially told investigators Cline had pointed a gun at him and when he reacted by grabbing it, it discharged and killed her — but then later told his girlfriend he killed Cline while she was asleep, according to the DA's office.
He then drove to Arkansas, where he disposed of Cline's body, a cell phone and a firearm, according to the DA's office. An autopsy later found Cline died of a through-and-through gunshot wound to the head.
“When she was taken from me a part of me died along with her," said Kim Cline, the victim's mother. “Laramie could light up a room with her smile. She was beautiful but had no idea that she was. Laramie was a sweet soul.”
Houston-Harvey is currently serving a 12-year prison sentence in the Arkansas Department of Corrections for dumping the victim’s body. As part of a plea agreement in June, he pleaded guilty in Weld County District Court to second-degree murder.
“No amount of prison time will ever bring this victim back nor will it bring peace to her grieving family,” said Chief Deputy District Attorney Anthony Perea, who prosecuted the case. “All cases we prosecute are hard, but this one was especially hard given the facts. This murder was completely senseless, and the defendant robbed this young woman of the rest of her life. He took away a part of her family that they’ll never get back.”
Houston-Harvey's Colorado sentence will run concurrent to his Arkansas sentence, the DA's office said.
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