A Virginia man who says he punched a woman because she called him the n-word has been convicted of second-degree murder. On Monday an Arlington, Va., jury recommended that Robert Coleman, 27, serve 10 years behind bars for the death of Fedelia Montiel-Benitez, who died in July.
But the circumstances of Montiel-Benitezâs death were hotly contested by the prosecution and Colemanâs lawyers, who expressed disappointment that their client wasnât given a manslaughter charge.
The fateful encounter between Montiel-Benitez and Coleman began at a 7-Eleven. As the Washington Post reports, Coleman had gone into the convenience store to buy cigarettes; Montiel-Benitez, to buy alcohol. The two strangers then got into an argument (itâs still unknown about what), which Colemanâs girlfriend, Nikki Howard, had to break up. Surveillance video shows Montiel-Benitez leaving the 7-Eleven before she turns around to face Coleman again.
Thatâs when she called him the n-word, Coleman told detectives. He snapped and chased Montiel-Benitez outside, throwing a punch at the 39-year-old woman that would put her in a coma.
She died in a hospital 10 days later.
Prosecutors disputed Colemanâs account, saying that Montiel-Benitez didnât speak English well enough to use the slur (a claim that ignores how prevalent both the n-word and anti-blackness are), but they also said that even if Montiel-Benitez did use the racial slur, Colemanâs response still wasnât justified.
But Coleman insists that he never meant to kill Montiel-Benitez. In fact, Coleman told detectives that he thought that the victim, who was heavyset and wore her hair short, was a man.
Still, Coleman likely didnât help his case when he fled the scene of the assault. When he was tracked down by a detective, Coleman initially denied any involvement until it was revealed that the woman was in critical condition.
During closing arguments, prosecutor David Lord told the jury that âwords aloneâ shouldnât be a reason to kill someone. Colemanâs defense had hoped that the jury would see the incident as manslaughter, emphasizing that their client hadnât intended to take Montiel-Benitezâs life.
Both second-degree murder and manslaughter apply to killings that werenât premeditated or plannedâthe major distinction between the two is that manslaughter charges are typically applied in instances where the assailant was acting under extreme duress (in other words, where the assailant was provoked to act in an unreasonable or disturbed way). Judging by the charge the district attorney hit Coleman with, being called the n-word doesnât fit that kind of provocation.
As the Post reports, a judge is expected to formally sentence Coleman on May 24 and will likely adhere to the juryâs 10-year recommendation. The maximum punishment for second-degree murder is 40 years in prison.
