PORTLAND, Maine — A 26-year-old Portland man with a history of mental illness has pleaded guilty to fatally stabbing an acquaintance in his apartment two years ago.
In a plea agreement with prosecutors, Shawn Garland pleaded guilty to murder Wednesday in the death of 58-year-old Richard Meyers. The killing took place in Garland’s Parkside neighborhood apartment on Aug. 12, 2010.
Sentencing is scheduled for January.
Prosecutors say they will argue for a 35-year sentence.
Garland’s attorney has said that Garland’s history of mental illness and his claims of self-defense could have been used in his defense had the case gone to trial.