Michigan Attorney's Ex Gets 30-to-75 for Murdering Wife
A Michigan man was sentenced to 30 to 75 years in prison today for stabbing to death his estranged wife, attorney Leontyne “Tina” Partee-Elder, in her home last year as her two children apparently slept nearby.
Partee-Elder, 41, who had formerly worked in the public defender’s office before moving to the Plunkett Cooney law firm, had taken out a restraining order against Kevin Elder, recounts a Grand Rapids Press article published last month. Elder, 46, agreed to plead guilty to a reduced charge of second-degree murder in her death to spare her children from testifying at a scheduled November first-degree murder trial. They were 9 and 11 at the time of the crime.
The sentence he received today, according to the Grand Rapids Press, is expected to keep him in prison for the rest of his life.
“Elder said he was remorseful and he knows he killed his wife, but he blamed it on his depression, psychiatric drugs and substance abuse,” the newspaper states.
Related ABAJournal.com coverage:
Ill. to Use GPS to Enforce Protective Orders
As Ill. Murder-Suicide Shows, System Can’t Always Protect Women
