Officers plead guilty to reckless endangerment in fatal shooting of 8-year-old Fanta Bility [View all]

Source: ABC News

Officers plead guilty to reckless endangerment in fatal shooting of 8-year-old Fanta Bility

Fanta was fatally shot on Aug. 27, 2021, in Sharon Hill, Pennsylvania.

ByDeena Zaru
November 10, 2022, 4:43 PM

Three former Sharon Hill, Pennsylvania, police officers pleaded guilty to reckless endangerment during a court hearing on Thursday in the fatal shooting of Fanta Bility, an 8-year-old girl who was killed last year after officers fired shots into a crowded area.

Former officers Brian Devaney, Devon Smith and Sean Dolan were each charged on Jan. 18 with 12 criminal counts of manslaughter and reckless endangerment. They pleaded guilty to the lesser charge as part of a plea agreement requested by the girl's family, according to Philadelphia ABC News station WPVI.

A request for comment to the officers' attorneys was not immediately returned.

Fanta Bility's family attended the hearing and told reporters they hope the officers' guilty pleas will help bring their family some "closure."

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Fanta was shot on Aug. 27, 2021, in Sharon Hill while exiting a football game at Academy Park High School with her family. Devaney, Smith and Dolan fired their guns toward the crowd after two teens opened fire in a personal dispute close to the high school, according to Delaware County District Attorney Jack Stollsteimer.

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Read more: https://abcnews.go.com/US/officers-plead-guilty-reckless-endangerment-fatal-shooting-year/story?id=93051145