Proof killer sentenced to time served in shooting of the rapper

By M&C News Oct 27, 2006, 11:42 GMT

Mario Etheridge was sentenced Thursday to time served and a $2,000 fine for weapons violations in the case involving the shooting and death (which was ruled the lawful defense of another man) of rapper Proof – a member of the rap group D12 and friend of rapper Eminem.

Etheridge, 28, was convicted by a jury in September for carrying a concealed weapon and discharging a firearm inside a building. The charges were from an April gunfight at a club that left Proof, whose real name was Deshaun Holton,  and Keith Bender dead.

The sentence was handed down by Wayne County Circuit Judge Vera Massey Jones who issued the time serve sentence for the concealed handgun and the fine for firing the gun in a building.

Etheridge, who turned himself in to police following the incident, spent several days in jail while waiting to post bond for the charges.

Police have stated that Etheridge shot and killed Proof after the rapper fatally shot Bender (Etheridge's cousin). Etheridge's lawyer claimed the fight between Proof and Bender was due to an argument over a game of pool.
 
The prosecutors in the case decided that Etheridge had acted lawfully in defense of Bender when he shot at Proof and killed him. Etheridge received the illegally firing a weapon charge due to his shooting the handgun twice at the ceiling before aiming the gun at the rapper.