A Minnesota man opened fire on a birthday party after the birthday party attendees would not sing "Happy Birthday" to his girlfriend, the New York Daily News reports. Delonte Thomas, 20, has been sentenced to nearly 28 years in prison for the shooting.
The incident happened a year ago this month, when Thomas was at a birthday party for someone else. He reportedly started a fight with some partygoers for serenading the host, but not his girlfriend, whose birthday was happened to be the same day. He left the party and returned about 20 minutes later with a semi-automatic, and shot the woman who refused to sing to his girlfriend nine times. Thomas also shot two others eight times each. All three were treated and survived.
Thomas said in a court statement that he has no memory of having a gun or shooting any guests the party.
"I'm the peacemaker, I'm the one to try my best to make it through the situation. I don't recall having a gun. I don't recall shooting [anyone]. I just hope to get some type of mercy here," he said.
He added, "Everybody makes mistakes, and everybody deserves a second chance."
[via the New York Daily News]
