On Tuesday, a Georgian woman Shontover Kirkland pleaded guilty reckless behavior and two counts of involuntary manslaughter in relation to the tragic deaths of two men in 2021.
Shontover Kirkland, 32, who has been identified as the suspect in the deaths of Eynn Wilson and Edward Kirk Jr. on Clarks Hill Lake in Lincoln County, turned herself in to law enforcement in September 2021 to face prosecution. She is going to prison after two fathers lost their lives in the lake as a result of a “prank.”
The tragic event took place at a boat party, and some of the footage of it was recorded. Prior to this week’s judge’s sentencing, officers arrested her in the Lincoln County Sheriff’s Office Jail.
Who Is Shontover Kirkland? The Prank Video Has Gone Viral
Shontover Kirkland, a woman of Augusta, Georgia, pleaded guilty to careless behavior and unintentional manslaughter. Following a joke that turned fatal, she will serve a year in prison.
According to an AP News report, the warrants accuse Kirkland of pushing Kirk Jr. into deep, cold water without taking into account whether he could swim, which is alleged to be what ultimately led to his death. She is also accused of being responsible for Wilson’s passing.
The boats were docked and roped together at Clarks Hill Lake on April 25, 2021, as per WRDW. She had leased two boats that day. Edward Kirk and Eynn Wilson, best friends, were among a group of people on the boats with Kirkland.
As per testimony given in court by a Georgia Bureau of Investigation investigator, video taken from the boat showed Kirkland throwing Kirk and a woman wearing a life jacket into the water. Wilson dove in to save Kirk because the man couldn’t swim. Both of them struggled underwater, and neither surfaced.
Days later, dive crews investigating the region found the bodies of Kirk and Wilson. During her testimony at the court, Kirkland apologized and claimed that the fatalities were an accident.
As a result of the two Augusta men’s 2021 drownings, Kirkland was charged by the Georgia Bureau of Investigation with two charges of involuntary manslaughter and one count of reckless conduct. Shontover Kirkland entered a guilty plea to two counts of involuntary manslaughter on Tuesday, as per a number of local news sources in the Augusta area.
Shontover Kirkland was given a year in prison and nine years of probation by the judge.
Edward Kirk & Eynn Wilson Family Injustice Reaction
Videos from the boat party provide various stories of how the men ended up on the lake. Two boats seemed to be anchored side by side in the water. Per the footage, Edward “E.J.” Kirk was pushed into the water. Someone then screams, “They can’t swim!
According to WRDW, Kirkland expressed her guilt for her conduct, which led to these tragedies, to the families of the victims. Krickland’s one-year prison term is reportedly not enough for her family.