The man accused of assaulting and killing 52-year-old Michael Smith in 2023 was sentenced to three years in prison this week after pleading guilty to manslaughter. 

James McGinley, 41, faced manslaughter and assault charges for allegedly assaulting Smith on May 16 in the area of North Nevada Avenue and Cimarron Street. Smith died from his injuries on June 24, according to previous Gazette reporting.

Previous Gazette reporting details that McGinley initially pleaded not guilty to all charges and his trial began on July 22, but after four days it ended in a mistrial. Kate Singh, a spokesperson for the 4th Judicial District Attorney’s Office, confirmed in August that the mistrial was the result of a hung jury.

A hung jury is when all jurors presiding over a case can’t come to a unanimous verdict, ending the trial without a guilty or not-guilty verdict and resulting in the need for a second trial.

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At the time, Singh stated she was unable to provide the specific numbers of the split between guilty and not guilty verdicts because that information is “protected.”

Court records show that on Wednesday McGinley was sentenced to three years in the Department of Corrections with credit for one-year time served for pleading guilty to the manslaughter charge. 

“I had punched Mr. Smith in the face, and he fell down and hit his head,” McGinley stated to the court during his plea hearing in September. 

The additional charges of assault and criminally negligent homicide were dismissed as part of the plea agreement.  

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