Man Who Killed Friend While Playing With Gun Gets 10 Years

PORTLAND, Ore. (AP) – A 20-year-old man who killed his friend while playing with a loaded handgun last year has been sentenced to nearly 10 years in prison.

The Oregonian/OregonLive reports Ulizes Escobar pleaded guilty July 19 in Washington County Circuit Court to second-degree manslaughter. He was sentenced this week.

The Nov. 20, 2018 shooting killed 19-year-old Luis Diego Hernandez-Garcia.

Hernandez-Garcia and Escobar were among several people gathered at another friend’s home in Hillsboro. Prosecutors said Escobar brought a revolver and a pistol to the home, pointed the revolver at his friends and pulled the trigger several times.

Prosecutors say he then pointed the pistol toward Hernandez-Garcia, pulled the trigger and a round hit him. Escobar told police he thought both guns were unloaded.

Hernandez-Garcia died in the home.

Prosecutors said Escobar and other witnesses initially told police that strangers came into the home and shot Hernandez-Garcia.