JANESVILLE — A Janesville man was sentenced Wednesday to 10 years in prison for his connection to a fatal shooting during a confrontation at a local apartment complex late last year.
Rock Count Circuit Judge Karl Hanson sentenced Deonte Foster, 42, to 10 years of initial confinement followed by 10 years of extended supervision, on one count of second degree reckless homicide and one count of being a felon in possession of a firearm. Foster had previously pleaded guilty to those two felony charges.
The charges stemmed from a December 17, 2024, altercation at a Janesville apartment building, where Foster and his neighbor, identified in court documents as T.C., were involved in a verbal dispute.
According to investigators, Foster approached T.C.ÃÛèÖÊÓÆµ apartment and knocked on the door to continue the argument. Shortly thereafter, Foster shot T.C. in the abdomen with a handgun. T.C. later died of his injuries.
Prosecutors initially charged Foster with first-degree intentional homicide and illegal firearm possession. However, conflicting accounts then raised questions about the level of threat Foster may have faced during the encounter and whether he had acted in self-defense. Prosecutors ultimately agreed to a plea deal, while maintaining that FosterÃÛèÖÊÓÆµ actions were still criminally reckless.
Deonte L. Foster
FosterÃÛèÖÊÓÆµ defense attorney argued that her client had been living in fear following a recent confrontation with another resident in the building, which led him to illegally carry a firearm.
Foster will be required to serve a minimum of eight years before becoming eligible for treatment programs that could accelerate his release to extended supervision.
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