Cornell Smith, accused shooter of Northeastern University student Rebecca Payne, stands between his lawyer Jeffrey Karp, and prosecutor Ian Polumboum in 2012. Contributed photo.
BOSTON — A former Boston man has been sentenced Friday to 18 to 20 years in prison for the 2008 murder of a New Milford woman, who prosecutors say was not his intended target.
Cornell Smith, 33, received the sentence in Superior Court in Boston after pleading guilty to reduced charges of voluntary manslaughter and unlawful firearm possession.
His victim was Rebecca Payne, a 22-year-old Northeastern University student.
Smith invaded her Boston apartment the night of May 20, 2008, and opened fire at her, according to prosecutors. Authorities said Smith mistook Payne for another woman with whom he had fought days earlier in the same building.
Smith was a federal prison inmate when he was indicted for her killing four years after the crime. He was serving a 12-year term for distribution of cocaine, a sentence that was imposed by a federal judge in January 2010, according to court records.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.