Defendant in Carson City drug deal robbery and murder pleads guilty
Reed Haber Skenandore III, one of the main defendants in the multiple codefendant Carson City murder case that resulted in the Jan. 11, 2016 shooting death of 18-year-old Grant Watkins during a drug deal, entered a guilty plea late Tuesday afternoon.
He pled guilty in Carson City District Court Dept. 2 to first degree felony murder, a category A felony with an agreement for a life sentence with the possibility of parole after 20 years have been served.
Skenandore III additionally pled guilty to conspiracy to commit robbery, a category B felony that carries a penalty of 1-6 years and the parties are free to argue whether this count runs consecutively or concurrently to the murder charge. He was arrested Jan. 12, 2016 and subsequently charged with murder.
The shooting took place after a deal involving three ounces of marijuana turned out to be a planned robbery among Skenandore and other co-defendants.
Sentencing is scheduled for May 9 at 9 a.m. in Judge James Wilson’s Carson City District Court. Currently 4 defendants remain set for trial in this case.