SPARTANBURG MAN RECEIVES 30-YEAR PRISON SENTENCE FOR MURDER CONVICTION

A Spartanburg man received a 30-year prison sentence today for killing his estranged wife’s lover after running the man off the road in traffic.

Phillip Edward Barnett Jr., 58, decided to plea guilty to murder this morning during the second day of his murder trial. He shot Timothy DeWitt Roach, 34, to death on Jan. 8, 1995. Barnett shot Roach six times with a .357 Magnum. The shooting occurred moments after Barnett ran Roach’s car off the shoulder of Highway 295 near Union Street.

Barnett pleaded guilty to murder in September 1995 and received a Life prison sentence. The conviction was overturned during the appeals process.

Barnett will have to serve every day of the prison sentence. He will get credit for the 81/2 years he has already served.

For more information, contact Murray Glenn at 809-4892.