UPDATE: Court records show Brandon McCray’s accessory after the fact charge was dropped Wednesday.
MEMPHIS, Tenn. — The man police say shot and killed 2-year-old Laylah Washington as she rode in a car with her mother and brothers in 2017 pleaded guilty to lesser charges Monday.
Tylan McCray, 25, was indicted on first-degree murder and attempted first-degree murder after he was arrested in 2018.
But he pleaded guilty to second-degree murder and attempted murder Monday. He was sentenced to 35 years in state prison on the murder charge and 12 years on each of the attempted second-degree murder charges.
► The Laylah Washington case: Previous coverage
Laylah was killed in June 2017. Police have said she was riding in a car with her mother, who had been in an argument with four men in a black four-door sedan in the area of Winchester and Kirby.
Police said McCray opened fire, and Laylah was hit in the head. She died two days later.
At one point in the nearly five-year-old case, McCray was briefly released on a $15,000 bond due to a clerical error. A judge had actually set bail at $15 million.
McCray’s cousin, Brandon McCray, is charged as an accessory and has a court appearance set for Tuesday. Authorities said he was driving the sedan.
Both men were identified through a CrimeStoppers tip on the one-year anniversary of Laylah’s death.
