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University of Nebraska

Lawrence Phillips won't face death penalty on murder charge

Josh Peter
USA TODAY Sports
Lawrence Phillips, appearing in court in 2005, died on Jan. 13 after being found unresponsive in his prison cell.

Lawrence Phillips, who will be arraigned Sept. 15 on charges that he murdered his former cellmate at Kern Valley State Prison, will not face the death penalty, prosecuting attorney Andrea Bridges of the Kern County (Calif.) District Attorney’s office told USA TODAY Sports Tuesday.

Phillips, the former star running back, faces 25 years to life if he is convicted but will avoid the death penalty because the DA’s office determined there were no “special circumstances’’ — which include multiple murders, murdering during a robbery and murder with a prior conviction of murder — that allows a California prosecutor to pursue the death penalty.

In addition to one count of first-degree murder, the charge against Phillips includes 14 "strike priors," criminal convictions that are either a serious or violent felony under the law, Bridges said.

Phillips, 40, is expected to plead not guilty at the arraignment at Kern County Superior Court in Bakersfield, Bridges said.

At the arraignment, Phillips will be advised of the charges against him, have an opportunity to enter a plea and assigned an attorney if he does not have his own, according to Bridges. She said she could not speculate on a possible trial date in part because it is common for defendants to request a continuance.

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Phillips, a star at the University of Nebraska in the 1990s before he went pro, is eligible for release in 2032 for the 2006 conviction of running his car into a group of teenagers and the 2009 conviction for assaulting an ex-girlfriend, according to Bridges. But that potential release date is in jeopardy following the death of Phillips’ ex-cellmate, Damion Soward, whose body was found in April in their cell.

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