WASHINGTON (Sputnik) — A mentally-ill man who killed a family of five and fled the US state of Georgia received a reduced sentence of a life in prison without the possibility of parole after he pleaded guilty to committing the crime, Coweta Judicial Circuit District Attorney Peter Skandalakis said in a statement on Thursday.
"While the case did qualify for the death penalty, based on the significant prior mental health issues of the defendant and the wishes of some of the members of the families, this office is taking a plea of guilty with a sentence of life without parole," Skandalakis said.
Lee pleaded guilty to committing the murders, but received a life sentence after reaching an agreement with prosecutors on Wednesday given he is suffering from a severe case of mental illness, local media reported.
Skandalakis noted that the sentence will ensure Lee will spend the rest of his life in a Georgia state prison and he will not present a danger to society.
About 20 percent of inmates in federal prisons and 15 percent of inmates in state prisons in the United States have a serious mental illness, according to Treatment Advocacy Centers.
