Damion Chavez

Murder defendant Damion Lamont Chavez, 21, has accepted a plea deal from the Webster County Attorney’s Office.

Chavez pleaded guilty to one count of second-degree murder this morning in Webster County District Court. He was set to go to trial today for one count of first-degree murder and one count of first-degree robbery for the October 2019 shooting death of Sioux Falls man Mohammed Yaqoub.

Under the plea agreement, the state amended the murder charge from first-degree to second-degree, and dismissed the first-degree robbery charge. If Chavez had gone to trial and was convicted of first-degree murder, he would have faced a mandatory life sentence without the possibility of parole.

Chavez will be sentenced on Aug. 25. A second-degree murder conviction carries a maximum prison sentence of 50 years, and Chavez will not be eligible for parole until he serves at least 70% of the maximum sentence.

See Wednesday’s issue of The Messenger for the full story.