CHARLOTTE, N.C. — The family of Israel Williams, who was 19 years old when he was shot to death, said they didn't want another life ruined.
That's why they asked a judge in court Tuesday to give his killer a second chance.
[PAST COVERAGE: Arrest made in connection to body found near elementary school]
Isaiah Green, 18, pleaded guilty to second-degree murder in court in Mecklenburg County.
In exchange, he got a little over a decade behind bars.
He could have had a life sentence.
In December, police said Green shot and killed Williams in southeast Charlotte.
Police said surveillance video showed two men, one of whom was Williams, coming out of the woods at night near Idlewild Elementary School.
The video then showed a car pulling up, and police said Green started shooting from inside.
A boy walking to school on this path the next day found Williams’ body along the fence line of the school.
Police investigated and arrested Green a few days later.
Attorneys said Tuesday the shooting was over drugs.
Williams' family said they didn’t want to see two lives destroyed, so they were content with Green serving a lesser sentence.
Green will serve 12 to 15 years, and Williams’ family hopes he will turn his life around and be a better person.
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