MONTGOMERY COUNTY, Va. – The Christiansburg man who shot and killed another man in a parking lot will now spend an additional five years in prison on top of his 26-year sentence out of Salem.
Zane Christian was sentenced to 18 years with 13 years suspended on Monday in Montgomery County Circuit Court. He was sentenced to three years for use of a firearm in the commission of a felony and 15 years with 13 years suspended for carjacking.
Recommended Videos
Christian was sentenced to 26 years in prison in February in Salem Circuit Court for the series of events on Nov. 9, 2020, when he shot and killed 27-year-old Rico Turner at the Lakeside Shopping Center parking lot in Salem.
The maximum sentence Christian could have received was up to 43 years for Turner’s death, but during Christian’s sentencing, the Judge cited Christian’s remorsefulness as a reason for a lower sentence.
After his time in prison, he’ll be on probation for a total of 20 years and is no longer allowed to have contact with his estranged wife.
During a March 2021 hearing, Christian’s estranged wife, Emily Christian, testified that she and Christian had a custody hearing that resulted in his child support payments increasing one week before the shooting happened.
Emily Christian testified during Zane’s sentencing in Salem, saying her life has been a ‘nightmare’ since the shooting.