Ohio woman convicted of fatally shooting 19-year-old in face

COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH) – A woman will be jailed for at least 14 years after pleading guilty to the 2022 murder of a 19-year-old in southwest Columbus.

According to the Franklin County Prosecutor's Office, Nachyla Halton, 20, pleaded guilty this week to voluntary manslaughter, a first-degree felony, which carries a three-year sentence on the gun charge. The plea stems from the fatal shooting of Jazmine Chester, 19, who was found dead on May 27, 2022, during a wellness check.

Police found Chester at his Wedgewood Village apartment in the 3700 block of Briggs Road in the Holly Hill neighborhood. She died of a gunshot to the face.

The welfare check was ordered after Chester had not heard from him in eight days. She was last seen entering her apartment on May 19 at 2 a.m. with an unknown man, later identified as Halton.

Halton was questioned by police in November while in the Cuyahoga County Jail, where she was being held on weapons possession charges. She told police she was not in Columbus in May, but admitted to knowing Chester only by his first name.

Police, however, said they linked Halton to the car that was seen leaving the apartment and that it fled toward the Cleveland area. She was charged with murder and arrested after her release from the Cuyahoga County Jail.

Following Halton's guilty plea, Franklin County Common Pleas Court Judge Bill Sperlazza sentenced her to 14 to 19 1/2 years in prison, a sentence jointly recommended by the prosecution and Halton's defense attorney.