OAKLAND — A man pleaded no contest to voluntary manslaughter on Monday for fatally shooting another man during an argument in North Oakland on New Year’s Day.
Edward Barlow, 53, of Oakland was charged with murder for the shooting of 36-year-old Tearance Garnett of Oakland in the 3400 block of Adeline Street at about 5:20 p.m. on Jan. 1.
But the Alameda County District Attorney’s Office agreed today to allow Barlow to plead no contest to the lesser charge of voluntary manslaughter and be sentenced to six years in state prison, which is the middle range of sentencing options for that crime.
Barlow is scheduled to be formally sentenced by Alameda County Superior Court Judge Morris Jacobson on April 2.
Family members of both Garnett and Barlow packed Jacobson’s courtroom for a preliminary hearing for Barlow today but Barlow entered his plea before the hearing began.
Oakland police said officers who responded to the shooting on Jan. 1 found Garnett suffering from a gunshot wound. He was transported to a hospital, where he was pronounced dead a short time later.
A police investigator wrote in a probable cause statement that witnesses saw Barlow holding a pistol in his right hand and then fire a single round at Garnett.
Garnett worked as a building supervisor at The Regillus, a 47-unit luxury condominium complex at 200 Lakeside Drive near Lake Merritt, according to a GoFundMe post that’s seeking money to help his family pay for his
funeral costs.
The website at https://www.gofundme.com/tearance-garnett-regillus had raised $3,575 of the $5,000 goal as of this afternoon.