Attorney General Peter F. Kilmartin today announced that a Providence County Superior Court jury found Lakesha Garrett (DOB: 06/03/76), with a last known address of 392 Pine Street, Providence, guilty of manslaughter for the October 15, 2009 stabbing death of Gary Mitchell. The verdict was handed down after two days of jury deliberations that concluded a four-day trial before Superior Court Justice Judith Savage.
During the trial, the State showed that Garrett and Mitchell had multiple physical altercations over the course of several hours of drinking and taking illegal drugs at the home of a mutual acquaintance. During one of these altercations, Garrett grabbed a knife and stabbed Mitchell several times.
Garrett was indicted by a Providence County Grand Jury for murder in March 2010. Based on the evidence presented during the trial, the jury found the defendant guilty of the lesser-included charge of manslaughter.
Garrett has been held without bail at the Adult Correctional Institution since her arrest. She is scheduled to be sentenced on July 27, 2011.
The case was prosecuted by Special Assistant Attorneys General Kelly McElroy and Peter Roklan on behalf of the Office of the Attorney General. The lead detective from the Providence Police Department was Detective Maurice Green.